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A TRIP TO 

/ 

PALESTINE AND SYRIA 



BY 


JOHN P. HACKENBKOCH 



Copyright, 1913, by 
John P. Hackenbroch 


ros 
i ti.z 
H 15 


Preface 


This trip to Palestine and Syria was made on a Cook’s 
tour, and, since the firm of Thomas Cook & Son is prac¬ 
tically the best of its kind in the world, our party was 
managed without any of the inconveniences of delay or 
possible danger. 

Our first landing place, according to the program in 
our guide book, was at Jaffa and from there, under the 
direction of our conductor, we went to the Holy City of 
Jerusalem and the sacred places in its vicinity; to Beth¬ 
lehem, the birthplace of the Saviour; by the Pools of 
Solomon to Plebron, then to the Dead Sea, the River 
Jordan, Jericho and Bethany. 

Continuing towards the north of Palestine and Syria, 
we passed through the cities where Jesus had preached— 
to Samaria, to Nazareth, His home, and by Mount Tabor 
to the Sea of Galilee and the ancient Capernaum. From 
there to Damascus, to the ruins of Ba’albek and over 
Mount Lebanon, and finally we again reached the Medi¬ 
terranean at Bey rout. 

In this volume I have not tried to supply exhaustive 
information, nor to unravel the multitudinous threads of 
controversy woven round nearly every sacred spot. I 
have endeavored to record an interesting journey, to 
point out interesting spots seen, and to give concise 
information which may in some measure interest the 
reader as it did the traveler. The accompanying twenty- 



4 


PREFACE. 


one illustrations must give an added interest to the 
book itself in their number and beauty, all being re¬ 
productions of artistic photographs. 

With the kind permission of Thomas Cook & Son, I 
have frequently referred to the “Tourists’ Handbook for 
Palestine and Syria” and have used it as a foundation on 
which to build my narrative. 

JOHN P. HACKENBROCH, 

Paterson, New Jersey. 


Contents 


PALESTINE AND SYRIA 


Page 

Jaffa . 13 

The Greek Convent. 16 

The Latin Convent—the house of Simon the Tanner 16 

The Armenian Convent. 16 

From Jaffa to Jerusalem. 17 

The Home of Samson, etc., etc. 18 

Jerusalem . 19 

History of Jerusalem. 21 

Fall of Jerusalem. 25 

Towers of David, Hippicus and Mariamne. 28 

Bible Events and Allusions. 28 

Situation of Jerusalem. 29 

Modern Jerusalem. 30 

Jerusalem stands on four hills. 32 

Excavation in Jerusalem, and the sixteen sieges. ... 33 

Present Size and Aspect, and the Gates. 34 

Population, Religions, etc. 36 

Ophthalmic Hospital . 38 

Health of Jerusalem. 39 

Church of the Holy Sepulchre. 40 

Stone of Unction. 42 

Station of Mary. 43 

The Holy Sepulchre. 43 

Chapel of the Copts. 44 

Chapel of the Syrians. 44 

Chapel of the Apparition. 44 

Column of the Scourging. 44 


5 




























6 


CONTENTS. 


Page 

The Sacristy. 45 

The Bonds of Christ. 45 

The Chapel of St. Longinus. 45 

Chapel of the Division of the Vestments. 45 

Chapel of Helena. 45 

Altar of Dimas (the penitent thief). 46 

The Chair of Helena. 46 

The Chapel of the Finding of the Cross. 46 

Chapel of the Crown of Thorns. 47 

Greek Church. 47 

Center of the Earth. 47 

Calvary . 48 

Jesus met His Mother after the Resurrection. 49 

Chapel of Golgotha. 52 

Rent in the Rock. 52 

Chapel of Saint Mary. 53 

Chapel of the Crucifixion. 53 

Tombs of Godfrey de Bouillon and Baldwin 1. 53 

Tomb of Melchizedek. 53 

Church of the Armenians. 53 

The Temple (Haram esh-Sherif). 56 

Gate of the Chain. 57 

Dome of the Rock. 58 

Mosque El-Aksa . 60 

Tombs of the Sons of Aaron. 61 

Footstep of Christ. 61 

Praying place of Moses. 61 

Mosque of Omar. 62 

The Well of the Leaf. 62 

The Cradle of Christ. 62 

Solomon’s Stables . 62 

The Throne of Solomon. 64 

Dome of the Chain. 64 

Marble Fountain, called El-kas (or the Cup). 65 

Within the City. 65 

Tower of David. 65 






































CONTENTS. 


7 

Page 

Armenian Convent . 66 

Church of Saint James. 67 

Erloesungs-kirche (or Church of the Redeemer)... 67 

Palace of Caiaphas. 67 

Tomb of David. 67 

Coenaculum (or Chamber of the Last Supper).... 70 

Lepers’ Quarter . 71 

Dung Gate . 72 

Robinson’s Arch . 72 

Jews’ Wailing Place. 73 

The Via Dolorosa (Stations of the Cross). 75 

Pilate’s Judgment Hall..,. 76 

The Holy Steps (Scala Santa). 76 

Ecce Homo Arch. 76 

The Abyssinian Monastery. 77 

Corn Market . 78 

Church of Saint Anne. 78 

Outside the Walls. 79 

Valley of Hinnom. 79 

Aceldama (or Field of Blood). 79 

The Apostles’ Cavern. 80 

Hill of Evil Counsel. 80 

Jews’ Cemetery . 80 

Tombs of Zechariah, St. James and Absalom. 80 

Mount of Olives., 81 

Tombs of the Prophets. 81 

Center Summit of the Mount of Olives. 85 

Chapel of the Ascension. 85 

The Church of Pater Noster (where our Lord 

taught His diciples to pray). 87 

Garden of Gethsemane. 88 

The Chapel of the Agony. 89 

Tomb of the Virgin. 90 

Tombs of the Kings (or Helena). 92 

Tombs of the Judges. 93 

Grotto of Jeremiah. 94 



































8 


CONTENTS. 


Page 

Subterranean Quarries . 94 

Russian Buildings . 95 

Talitha Kumi . 96 

From Jerusalem to Bethlehem. 96 

Valley Rephaim. 96 

Well of the Magi (Wise Men). 96 

Tomb of Rachel. 97 

Bethlehem (Beit-Lahm) . 100 

Bible Associations . 101 

The Church of the Nativity. 103 

The Chapel (or Grotto) of the Nativity. 103 

The Chapel of the Manger. 104 

The Altar of the Magi. 104 

The Chapel of Saint Joseph. 104 

The Altar of the Innocents. 105 

The Chapel and Tomb of Saint Jerome. 105 

The Catholic Church of Saint Catherine. 106 

The Franciscan Monastery. 106 

The Well of Bethlehem (or David’s Well). 106 

The Milk Grotto. 107 

The Shepherds’ Field. 107 

The Grotto of the Shepherds (a Greek Chapel).... 108 

From Jerusalem to Hebron. 108 

Pools of Solomon. 108 

Hebron . 110 

Cave of Machpelah. 113 

Oak of Mamre (or Abraham’s Oak). 116 

From Jerusalem to Jericho. 117 

Apostles’ Spring . 117 

Good Samaritan Inn. 118 

The Dead Sea. 118 

Salt hill of Sodom. 120 

From the Dead Sea to the River Jordan. 120 

The Jordan . 121 

The Pilgrims’ Bathing Place. 123 

The Banks of the River. 124 






































CONTENTS. 


9 

Page 

From Jordan to Jericho. 125 

Wady-el-Kelt (the Valley of Achor). 125 

Gilgal (the modern Jericho). 126 

House of Zacchseus. 127 

Ancient Jericho . 127 

Elisha’s Fountain . 129 

The House of Rahab. 129 

Quarantania (or Mount of Temptation). 129 

From Jericho to Bethany and Jerusalem. 130 

Bethany . 131 

House of Mary and Martha. 131 

Tomb of Lazarus (Christ raiseth Lazarus to Life).. 132 

House of Simon the leper. 132 

Jerusalem .. 133 

From Jerusalem to Samaria.134 

Nob . 134 

El-Bireh (or Beeroth). 134 

Gibeah of Saul. 135 

Ramah of Benjamin. 135 

Bethel, or Beitin (or the House of God). 136 

Wady-el-Haramiyeh (i. e., Glen of the Robbers).. . 139 

Shiloh (Eli and Samuel). 140 

Khan el-Lubban (or Lebonah). 140 

Jacob’s Well . 142 

Nabulus or Shechem.. 144 

Samaritan Codex of the Pentateuch. 147 

Mount of Gerizim. 149 

Mount Ebal . 154 

Samaria . 155 

Church of Saint John and his prison. 157 

Colonnade (or “Street of the Columns”). 157 

From Samaria to Nazareth... 158 

Dothan . 159 

Joseph (whom they sold into Egypt). 159 

Jenin. 159 

The Plain of Esdrselon. 160 




































10 


CONTENTS. 


Page 

Fuleh . 163 

The Fountain of Jezreel. 163 

Mount Gilboa (Saul and Jonathan slain). 166 

Nain . 168 

Endor (the Cave of the Witch where Saul went 

before the fatal battle). 169 

Mount Tabor (our Lord’s Transfiguration). 169 

Nazareth . 171 

Church of the Annunciation. 173 

Chapel of Joseph. 174 

The Kitchen of the Virgin. 174 

The Holy House of Nazareth. 174 

The Workshop of Joseph. 175 

The Table of Christ. 175 

Synagogue (in which Christ used to preach). 175 

Fountain of the Virgin. 175 

The Wely Sim’an (or Hill behind Nazareth). 175 

From Nazareth to Tiberias. 177 

Cana of Galilee. 177 

Church with Waterpots (where Christ made Water- 

wine) . 177 

Kurun Hattin (or Horns of Hattin) where Christ 

preached the Sermon, feeding five thousand... 178 

Tiberias . 180 

Catholic Church . 181 

The Sea of Galilee. 182 

From Tiberias to Tell-Hum. 183 

Mejdel, or Magdala (where Mary Magdalene was 

born) . 183 

Land of Gennesaret. 183 

Tell-Hum (or Capernaum). 190 

Bible Events . 191 

Tiberias to Banias. 196 

Jewish farms (Rothschild’s Colony). 196 

Lake Huleh (or Waters of Merom). 196 

Dan-it is Tell-el Kadi (the Hill of the Judge). 197 

































CONTENTS 


11 

Pag* 

Fountain of the Jordan. 197 

Banias (or Caesarea Philippi). 198 

Source of the Jordan. 199 

Cave (or Grotto) of Pan. 200 

Mount Hermon . 200 

From Banias to Damascus. 202 

Kefr-Hawar . 203 

The Spot where Saint Paul beheld the wondrous 

vision . 203 

The Waters of Abana and Pharpar. 205 

Damascus . 206 

History . 207 

Bible Events . 209 

The Bazaars. 211 

The Great Mosque. 214 

The Street called Straight. 221 

The Christian Quarter. 221 

Abd-el-Kader . 222 

Window in Wall (where Saint Paul was let through 

in a basket). 225 

Tomb of Saint George (who assisted Saint Paul to 

escape) . 225 

Mammoth tree. 226 

House of Ananias... 226 

House of Naaman. 226 

On top of Hill (where Mohammed stood). 226 

From Damascus to Beyrout (via Ba’albek). 227 

Tomb of Abel. 227 

Ba’albek . 228 

Ruins . 231 

The Great Temple. 231 

Temple of the Sun. 232 

Portal of the Temple. 232 

Three big Stones. 232 

Circular Temple . 233 

From Ba’albek to Beyrout. 234 



































12 CONTENTS. 

Page 

One gigantic Stone in Quarries. 234 

Kerak Nuh . 234 

Tomb of Noah...., . 234 

El Mu’allaka. 234 

Zaleh . 234 

Maksie . 235 

Mount Lebanon. 235 

Beyrout . 236 

Consulates . 237 

Backsheesh . 240 

Camp Life . 241 


Illustrations 

Page 

Jaffa . Frontispiece 

Jerusalem . 19 

Church of the Holy Sepulchre. 40 

Interior of the Holy Sepulchre. 43 

COENACULUM (CHAMBER OF THE LAST SUPPER). 70 

Garden of Gethsemane—One of the Ancient Olive Trees, 

Under Which Jesus Prayed. 88 

Bethlehem . 100 

Shepherdess . 107 

Hebron—Cave of Machpelah . no 

Oak of Mamre, or Abraham’s Oak. 116 

Good Samaritan Inn. 118 

Our Party, Camping at Jericho. 127 

Bethany . 131 

Water Carrier. 142 

Samaritan High Priest and Pentateuch Roll at Shechem— 
Supposed Writing of Abishua, Great Grandson of Aaron 147 

Nazareth . 171 

Tiberias and the Sea of Galilee. 180 

Damascus . 206 

The Great Stone in Quarries Near Ba’albek. ,. 232 

Druse Women in Group—Lebanon. 234 

Beyrout . 236 


































A Trip to Palestine and Syria 

Approaching Jaffa from the sea, we were struck with 
the particular beauty of the scene, while experiencing 
the strange impression of looking upon the land sacred 
above any earthly place. 

It is the Holy Land, where our Lord Jesus Christ was 
born, the sacred places where He trod, where He per¬ 
formed so many miracles, where He suffered and died 
for our sake, and where He, the Saviour of all men, 
arose from the dead and ascended into Heaven. 

It is the Holy Land, the country of Jacob and David, 
of Rachel and Ruth. Among yon hills the prophets of 
Israel taught, and the Saviour of all men lived and 
died. 

That stony hillock of a town is the Joppa to which 
Hiram sent the cedar wood. The roadstead is the port 
from which Jonah sailed on his stormy voyage. The 
stretch of sand, relieved here and there by a palm, a fig 
tree or a pomegranate, is the forepart of that plain of 
Sharon on which all the roses of imagination bloom and 
shed their perfume. Yon towering chain of hills was 
the mountain home of Judah, Benjamin and Ephraim, 
and with Hebron, Zion, Bethel and Gerizim for its most 
eminent peaks of sacred memory. 

Jaffa, or Jaffe, is the Joppa of Scripture. Some say 
it was named after Japhet, son of Noah; ancient geogra¬ 
phers affirmed that a city existed there before the flood, 


13 


14 


JAFFA. 


and others claim the name is derived from Yafeh, mean¬ 
ing beautiful. Some classic students liken the name to that 
of Iopa, daughter of ZEolius, and in Jaffa, or Iopa, was 
laid the scene for the legend of Andromeda—in Pliny’s 
time the chains were still shown with which Andromeda 
had supposedly been bound to the rocks and left a vic¬ 
tim to the cruel monster later slain by Perseus. In 
Joshua 19.46, it is called Japho; elsewhere in the 
authorized version it is Joppa. In the Apocrypha it is 
Joppe (1 Esdras 5.55). 

In Biblical history Jaffa is described, in Joshua 19.46, 
as being in the boundaries of Dan. In Solomon’s time, 
when Hiram, King of Tyre, sent cedar and pine wood 
for the building of the Temple, he said in his contract: 
“We will cut wood out of Lebanon, as much as thou 
shalt need, and we will bring it to thee in floats by sea 
to Joppa * * * and will cause them to be discharged 

there” (1 Kings 5.9)—“and thou shalt carry it up to 
Jerusalem” (2 Chron. 2.16). 

The materials for the rebuilding of the Temple under 
Zerubbabel were also brought “from Lebanon to the sea 
of Joppa” (Ezra 3.7). Jonah, fleeing “from the presence 
of the Lord, went down to Joppa, and he found a ship 
going to Tarshish” (Jonah 1.3). The succeeding cir¬ 
cumstances are referred to by our’Lord as typical of Him¬ 
self (Matt. 12.40). 

Here the Apostle Peter had that remarkable vision, 
showing him that the distinction between Jew and Gen¬ 
tile was forever abolished. Here he restored Dorcas to 
life (Acts 9.31-43), and lodged at the house of one Simon, 
a tanner, a house to be henceforth memorable in the 
world’s history as the spot where divine command was 
given to include the Gentiles in the fold of Christ (Acts 
10.9-23). 

During the stormy period that elapsed between the 


JAFFA. 


15 


last of the prophets and the coming of our Saviour, 
Joppa was a place of great importance, and was con¬ 
sidered a key to the district. 

When Pompey invaded Syria, in B. C. 63, Joppa was 
annexed to that province. It was subsequently part of 
the possessions of Herod the Great and Archelaus, until, 
with all Palestine, it became a part of the Roman prov¬ 
ince of Syria. 

Since that day, Joppa has had various revolutions. In 
the last Jewish War, Josephus states that 80,000 inhab¬ 
itants were slain by Cestius. For a thousand years it 
has been the principal landing place for pilgrims going 
to Jerusalem. During the Crusades, Paynim and Chris¬ 
tian took and retook, fortified, destroyed, and rebuilt 
Joppa as occasion served. After the Crusades, desola¬ 
tion set in, and in the thirteenth century travels the 
town is described as a mere collection of tents, no habi¬ 
table house remaining. During succeeding times it 
again revived, and resumed a portion of its old impor¬ 
tance. In 1797 the French took the place, and shot on 
the strand 4,000 Albanians, who had surrendered after 
receiving a solemn promise of safety. Here also Napo¬ 
leon, when obliged to retreat, had 500 sick soldiers 
poisoned in the plague hospital. 

The House of Simon the Tanner is still shown, and 
Dean Stanley considers that circumstances are all in 
favor of the site having been truly identified. The town 
of Jaffa is beautiful from the sea, but the reverse of 
beautiful in the midst of its streets, which are dirty, 
narrow, and winding. The houses are built promiscu¬ 
ously, and, although seeming picturesque from a dis¬ 
tance, command no admiration upon a nearer view. 
Many donkeys and camels we met in the streets, but 
no vehicles. The population is estimated at from 25,000 
up to 30,000 and is increasing. There are about a thou- 


16 


JAFFA. 


sand Christians, a few Jews, and the rest are Mohammedans. 

There are three convents at Jaffa—the Greek Con¬ 
vent, near the landing place, the Latin Convent (the 
house of Simon the Tanner), and the Armenian Convent, 
where the plague sufferers were poisoned by Napoleon’s 
orders. 

There are three mosques in Jaffa, but none of them 
present any remarkable features. 

The most interesting things in Jaffa for the sightseer 
are the orange groves. They are extensive, easily access¬ 
ible, and the fruit is delicious; I saw on some of the 
trees hundreds of ripe, luscious oranges, oval in shape 
and some measuring from ten to fifteen inches in cir¬ 
cumference. Other fruits—lemons, pomegranates, water¬ 
melons, etc.—also attain great perfection here. For 
miles round the scene is one of luxuriant beauty. These 
orchards, or gardens, are protected by hedges of the 
prickly cactus. There are, in the vicinity, over 300 of 
these gardens, differing in size from three or four acres 
to ten or twelve acres; about a hundred of the gardens 
have two wells, the remainder only one well each. 
Oranges are sometimes sold in the streets of Jaffa at 
the rate of ten or twelve a nickel, and about 8,000,000 
are exported annually. They are considered the best 
in the world; we ate several of them and they had a de¬ 
licious flavor. 


From Jaffa to Jerusalem 


Leaving Jaffa, and on our way to Jerusalem, we passed 
the house and the tomb of Samson, the town where his 
wife had lived, and the place where he killed hundreds 
of Philistines with the jawbone of an ass. Samson was 
the strongest man of his time and once broke the jaw of 
a lion with his hand, but his strength and his weakness 
are said to have been in his hair. At a time when the 
Philistines ruled over the Israelites, he chose a Philistine 
woman as his wife. Betrayed by her, and captured by men 
of Judah, he was brought into Lehi to his enemies. Before 
them all he broke his bonds and seizing the jawbone of an 
ass killed a thousand men. He later loved Delilah and she, 
for the consideration of a large sum of silver, promised to 
deliver him into the hands of the Philistines. After various 
ruses, she discovered the source of his strength and caused 
his head to be shorn of its seven locks. The Philistines 
bound him with fetters of brass, put out his eyes and forced 
him to work at a mill. In B. C. 1117, during the time of a 
festival, Samson was brought before the princes and chief 
nobility of the land to be goaded and sported by them. 
Knowing his end had come he prayed earnestly for the 
return of his old strength and grasping the two supporting 
pillars of the temple, as if for support, broke them, meeting 
his own death bravely and killing three thousand of the 
most powerful of the land, more than he had ever killed 
in actual warfare. 


17 


18 


FROM JAFFA TO JERUSALEM. 


“Samson’s mangled body was brought up from Gaza 
by his brethren, and buried on his native hill, between 
Zorah and Eshtaol” (Judges 16.31). 

Descending towards Jerusalem the Russian buildings 
lay to our left, the valley to the right, in which were a 
large reservoir and the Upper Pool of Gihon, in Isaiah’s 
time the “upper pool in the Fuller’s Field,” and before 
us was the Jaffa Gate through which we entered the 
Holy City. 





























JERUSALEM. 









Jerusalem 


(Formerly the camps of Thomas Cook & Son were 
located outside the Jaffa Gate, but as travelers gener¬ 
ally like to make a long stay in the neighborhood of 
Jerusalem, and in case of bad weather camp life in one 
locality is not agreeable, arrangements have been made 
for travelers to stop at hotels, the best in Jerusalem. 
The writer was assigned to the Grand New Hotel. 

On my second trip to Palestine, when my beloved 
wife accompanied me, our conductors had the party 
divided into groups for several hotels, and we were 
assigned to the Hotel Central. These are two good 
hotels and both inside the walls of the city, situated 
near Mount Zion, opposite the Tower of David. Their 
situation commands the best views of the city—the 
Mount of Olives, Jordan Valley, the Dead Sea, and 
Moab Mountains). 

The natural situation of the city of Jerusalem, not 
only conveniently central, but protected by the sur¬ 
rounding ravines, above which it rises like a mountain 


19 



20 


JERUSALEM. 


fortress, doubtless led to its pre-eminence over the other 
cities of Palestine from the earliest times. It is first 
heard of, perhaps, as Salem (Gen. 14.18), the city of 
Melchizedek; then as Jebus, the stronghold of the Jebus- 
ites (Joshua 18.28), and it is probable that the Amorites 
and Hittites, whose territories adjoined that of the 
Jebusites, where the city stood, shared its possession. 
The name of Jebus is mentioned on tablets still existing, 
written by its Amorite king in the fifteenth century 
B. C. After ineffectual attempts to dispossess this peo¬ 
ple, the Benjamites were obliged to leave the strong¬ 
hold of Mount Zion in their hands, and themselves 
inhabit only the lower part of the city, until King David 
and his warriors—all their energies aroused by the over¬ 
confident defiance of the Jebusites—captured the citadel, 
which thenceforth took the name of the “City of David” 
and Jerusalem became the civil and religious center of 
the United Kingdom of Israel and Judah. Solomon 
adorned and fortified it with splendid buildings and 
strong walls and towers, and erected the Temple on 
Mount Moriah, where tradition laid the scene of Abra¬ 
ham’s sacrifice. Hither the Ark was transferred from 
Mount Zion, where David had placed it. 

In Rehoboam’s reign, after the ten tribes had re¬ 
volted, Jersualem was besieged and plundered by 
Shishak, King of Egypt. This was the beginning of 
a long period of losses and suffering, in which the 
city was involved, both through its constant struggles 
with the rebelling tribes which constituted the King¬ 
dom of Israel, and its repeated attacks from the 
great nations whose territories almost surrounded Pal¬ 
estine—Syrians, Assyrians or Chaldeans, and Egyp¬ 
tians. Sacred historians attribute this long siege of 
misery to the gross idolatry which under many of 
the kings had usurped the place of Christianity and 


HISTORY. 


21 


worship of the one God who had promised to defend the 
city so long as its people remained loyal to Him. After 
Jerusalem had been pillaged by Philistines and Arabians 
in the reign of Jehoram, by the king of Israel in that 
of Amaziah, and the Temple had been despoiled of its 
treasures to avert impending disaster, the city was 
threatened with utter ruin by the Assyrian army under 
Sennacherib. During the siege, and after the miracu¬ 
lous deliverance, Hezekiah fortified and beautified it once 
more, and brought the waters of Gihon into it by sub¬ 
terraneous passage. His son, Manasseh, was overcome 
by the Assyrians, and carried captive to Babylon. On 
his return, however, he also repaired the city, and added 
to its defences. Josiah had been slain while warring 
against Pharaoh Necho, king of Egypt, while the latter 
was on his way to besiege the Assyrian city of Carche- 
mish. Necho visited Jerusalem on his return, took King 
Jehoahaz to Egypt, and exacted a tribute from the city, 
and Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, on his return, 
pillaged Jerusalem three times. On the last occasion 
the Temple and palaces were burned down, the walls 
leveled to the ground, and King Zedekiah and the re¬ 
maining people (for many had been already taken) were 
carried captive to Babylon. This was in the year B. C. 
586. 

After the return of the Jews from their seventy years' 
captivity, the city and Temple were slowly rebuilt, but 
not without opposition from the rulers, who represented 
the various races in Samaria and the surrounding 
regions. These people were jealous of the reviving pros¬ 
perity of the Jews, and it was only by the dauntless 
energy of Ezra, Nehemiah and others, that the work was 
at length accomplished. 

In the year 332 B. C. the city passed, without a siege, 
into the hands of Alexander the Great, who respected 


22 


JERUSALEM. 


its sacred character, and conferred benefits upon it. 
Ptolemy I. Soter, king of Egypt (in 314 B. C.), besieged 
it on the Sabbath, when the people, in their reverence 
for the day, would not resist, and a large number were 
carried into captivity. Again it was wrested from 
Egypt by the Seleucidae of Syria, and one of them, 
Antiochus Epiphanes, desecrated and oppressed it with 
such unendurable tyranny, that the insurrection of the 
Maccabees broke forth, in 166 B. C., leading to a na¬ 
tional revolution and the restoration of the Jews to 
independence under the sway of the Asmonean princes. 
The Tower of Antonia, at first called Baris, was built 
by Simon, brother of Judas, in the early part of the 
contest, and afterwards improved by Herod the Great. 

In the year B. C. 63, Jerusalem was taken by the 
Romans under Pompey, made tributary to Rome, and 
part of its fortifications were destroyed. Crassus again 
plundered the Temple, and it also suffered from a Par¬ 
thian army which Antigonus, the rightful heir to the 
priesthood, had called in to aid him against Herod, son 
of Antipater, whom the Roman influence had raised to 
a position of authority. Herod obtained a decree of the 
Senate appointing him king, and by aid of a Roman 
army took the city in 37 B. C. He put his enemies to 
death, built a new palace and his splendid Temple, and 
otherwise beautified the city (a great part of which had 
been destroyed, together with several thousand persons, 
by an earthquake, in the year B. C. 31), and enlarged 
the Baris, calling it Antonia. Shortly before the death 
of Herod the Saviour was born. 

Herod’s son, Archelaus, was deposed before he had 
reigned long, and Judaea then became a Roman province 
within the prefecture of Syria, governed by a procurator, 
who resided at Caesarea, and left Jerusalem to be governed 
by its own high priest and Sanhedrin. Coponius was the 


HISTORY. 


23 


first procurator, and Pontius Pilate was the fifth. The 
latter built the aqueduct crossing the valley of Hinnom. 
Shortly after the crucifixion of our Lord, Pilate was 
deposed from office, because of his tyrannical misgov- 
ernment, and Herod Agrippa governed Judaea and Sa¬ 
maria, over which his grandfather, Herod the Great, had 
ruled. Upon the death of Agrippa, however, his son 
being too young to reign, a procurator was again ap¬ 
pointed, and seven in succession (of whom Antonius 
Felix and Porcius Festus were the fourth and fifth) 
aggravated and enraged the Jews by their oppressions. 
At length the standard of revolt was raised; a success 
gained over the governor of Syria encouraged the Jews 
in their resistance, and compelled Titus to bring his 
legions from Egypt. In the year A. D. 70 occurred the 
siege and utter destruction of the Holy City, accom¬ 
panied by scenes of unparalleled horror and suffering; 
the Jews, though themselves distracted by internal dis¬ 
sensions, remained united in a desperately heroic effort 
of self-defence up to the last. The slaughter was fright¬ 
ful, and the Temple and whole city were burned down, 
with the exception of part of Herod’s palace and his 
three towers—Hippicus, Phasselus and Mariamne. A 
Roman garrison occupied these towers, and the Jews 
soon began to return and to inhabit the ruins. But upon 
their raising a rebellion (in 134 A. D.), under Bar-cho- 
chebas, against Hadrian, the latter expelled them all, and 
building palaces, temples, etc., transformed Jerusalem 
into a Roman city, under the name of iElia Capitolina. 
A temple was erected on Mount Moriah to Jupiter 
Capitolinus. 

Constantine transformed the place into a Christian 
city. Julian gave permission to the Jews to rebuild the 
Temple, but they could not accomplish it. In the year 
614 a vast army under the Persian king, Chosroes II., 


24 


JERUSALEM. 


destroyed the churches, and massacred the Christians. 
The Emperor Heraclius occupied the city, but in the 
year 637 it was surrendered to the Caliph Omar, and 
became a Mohammedan sacred city, the Mosque of 
Omar taking the place of the Jewish and pagan temples 
on Mount Moriah. In 688 this mosque was replaced 
by the beautiful Dome of the Rock, built by ’Abd 
el Melek, Caliph of Damascus. In 969 Jerusalem fell 
into the hands of the Egyptians, and in 1077 was 
won by the Turks, who practised such outrageous bar¬ 
barities upon Christians that the indignation of all 
Christendom was roused. The first crusade was organ¬ 
ized, and in 1098 a Christian host, commanded by God¬ 
frey de Bouillon, entered Syria. Next year Jerusalem 
was besieged and captured, the garrison and inhabitants 
massacred, and the crusaders attained the end of their 
laborious warfare in the possession of the Holy Sepul¬ 
chre. Godfrey was elected king of Jerusalem, and was 
succeeded by his relations until the year 1187, when 
the reigning king, Guy de Lusignan, was taken prisoner 
in a desperate battle with Saladin, and the city again 
fell into the power of Moslems. 

Richard I. of England and Philippe Auguste of 
France, who headed the third crusade, were unable to 
retake the city, though they appointed nominal kings 
over it. The last of them, John de Brienne, obtained the 
aid of his son-in-law, Frederick II. of Germany, against 
the Moslems and the city was yielded to the emperor, 
through an agreement with Sultan Melek-ed-din of 
Egypt in the year 1229, on condition that the ruined 
walls should not be rebuilt. 

In 1240 Jerusalem once more came under Mohamme¬ 
dan rule, being taken by the Sultan of Damascus, but 
three years later his successor yielded it to the Chris¬ 
tians, with other cities, to purchase their assistance in 


FALL OF JERUSALEM. 


25 


a war which was pending against the Sultan of Egypt. 
The walls were then rebuilt, and extended on the south 
to include the Coenaculum, or present Mosque of David. 
In the year 1244, a Tartar horde, the Kharezmians, took 
the city, and treated the inhabitants with great cruelty. 
Shortly afterwards they were dispersed by the Moham¬ 
medans of Syria, and it has been a Moslem city ever 
since that time. In the year 1517, the place was taken, 
with the remainder of Syria and Egypt, by the ottoman, 
Sultan Selim I., and in 1542 its present walls were built 
by Soliman the Magnificent. Napoleon planned to be¬ 
siege the city in the year 1799, but was obliged to re¬ 
linquish the idea. In consequence of a revolt, induced 
by over-taxation, it was bombarded by the Turks in 
1825. In 1831 it submitted to the Pasha of Egypt, Mo¬ 
hammed ’Ali, but by European interference he was de¬ 
prived of his possessions in Syria, and in 1840 Jerusalem 
again came under Turkish sway, under the reign of Sul¬ 
tan Abd-el-Mejid. In 1881 the population was suddenly 
increased by 40,000 Jewish fugitives from Russia. 

It may assist the reader to refresh his memory with 
the story of the fall of Jerusalem, and we do so in the 
graphic words of the late Archbishop of Canterbury. 


The Fall of Jerusalem 

“It was now the 13th Abib (March-April, A. D. 70), 
and the city, even at this time of mortal conflict, was 
crowded with worshippers who had come from distant 
countries to adore the God of their fathers in His holy 
and beautiful house, to which the heart of every Jew 
turned with longing as his home. * * * As Titus 


26 


JERUSALEM. 


drew near, he stationed the tenth legion at the foot of 
the Mount of Olives. The third or outer wall, erected 
by Agrippa, and the suburb, soon fell into his hands. 
But more than one tremendous sally of the infuriated 
defenders soon taught him the danger of an assault upon 
the more ancient precincts of the town. Taking up his 
station about a quarter of a mile from the wall, he cast 
a trench about the city, and compassed it round and kept 
it in on every side. And soon famine began to do its 
work more effectually than the sword of the Romans. 
All this time the mad party spirit of the defenders made 
them war with one another at every moment they could 
spare from their warfare with the Romans. Now, two 
well known parties of robbers and fanatics, under Eleazer 
and John of Giscala, were in the Temple, while another, 
under Simon, occupied the upper part of the city. As¬ 
sassins prowled through the streets, and in every house 
there was death. Meanwhile famine rages, and the well 
known story of Mary of Bethezor fulfilled the most 
melancholy page of Old Testament prophecy—‘the 
tender and delicate woman’ of Jeremiah 19.8-9 (cf. Deut. 
28.53-57; Lam. 4.10, cf. 2 Kings 6.28), the parallel to 
which, in 2 Kings 6.28, is mentioned as the lowest mis¬ 
ery in the siege of Samaria. Between the 14th of Abib, 
when the siege began, and 1st of Tammuz, it is said that 
115,000 bodies had been buried in the city at the public 
expense; and the Roman general wept as he saw the 
misery, calling heaven to witness that not his enmity, 
but the madness of the Jews themselves, was the cause 
of these unheard of sufferings. At length, by the latter 
weeks of July the Antonia was stormed. The daily 
sacrifice had ceased, no hope seemed left, and the de¬ 
fenders of the Temple were exposed to an irresistible 
assault from the fortress, which commanded its courts. 
But their furious zeal made them defend the holy pre- 


FALL OF JERUSALEM. 


27 


cincts inch by inch. Titus himself watched the assault, 
and urged on his soldiers, but to little purpose. It was 
not till August (9t.h of Ab), the day, it was remarked, 
on which the King of Babylon had destroyed the first 
Temple, that all was lost. Titus, it was well known, was 
anxious to save the magnificent building, hallowed by 
the religious associations of so many centuries; and this 
may account, in part, for the slow progress of his vic¬ 
tory. But on this fatal evening, a soldier, against orders, 
cast a brand into a small gilded doorway on the north 
side, and in a few moments the whole Temple was in 
a blaze. A loud shriek of horror from the defenders 
announced the catastrophe to Titus, who had retired to 
rest, intending to begin the assault next morning. Wildly 
rose the uproar; blazing rafters lighted up the darkness, 
while all around the crackling of the flames and the 
crashing of the falling roofs mingled with the shouts of 
the victors and the death cry of the Jews. Titus rushed 
forth, and in vain gave orders to stay the great conflagra¬ 
tion. His soldiers were in the Holy of Holies; they seized 
upon the treasures, which were scattered all around; not 
even Roman discipline could restrain them, and ‘the abom¬ 
ination of desolation’ took possession of the holy place. 
When the flames subsided, nothing was left of the Temple 
but a small portion of the outer cloister. 

“Even in this hour of horror the wild fanaticism of the 
Jews was scarcely quelled. The Messiah had been looked 
for as a deliverer by many, even in this last extremity. 
The small remnant of the cloister was now burned by 
the Roman soldiers, and 6,000 unarmed people, with 
women and children, were destroyed in it, who had been 
led up to the Temple shortly before by a false prophet,, 
confident that a great deliverer was at hand. But the 
actual destruction of the Temple, not one stone left upon 
another, was a death blow; the spirit of the wildest was 


28 


JERUSALEM. 


now effectually broken. The upper city (the strong¬ 
hold of Zion) still, indeed, resisted. There Simon had 
been joined by his rival John. Some time was neces¬ 
sarily lost before the Romans could raise their works 
against the steep bank of the valley of the Tyropaeon. 
When they did commence the assault, they found that 
the defenders had lost their wonted courage; when, on 
the 8th of Elul, the Romans burst, with shouts of tri¬ 
umph, into the last stronghold of their enemies, they 
found little but silent streets and houses full of dead 
bodies; while John and Simon long baffled all search, 
being concealed amidst the ruins and in the subterranean 
passages. 

“Thus Jerusalem was utterly cast down. A portion of 
the western wall and three great towers (towers of 
David, Hippicus and Mariamne) were left standing to 
shelter the Roman soldiers; but all the city, Zion, Akra 
and the Temple, was left in a mass of scarcely distinguish¬ 
able ruins. 

“The fearful catalogue which Josephus has preserved of 
those who lost their lives in the siege and the massacre 
which had preceded it in this war, tells us that they 
exceeded 1,300,000. And even if this be supposed to be 
an exaggeration, no one can read the account of the 
horrors of the war, and especially of its last struggle, 
without seeing that it well called for that terrific imagery 
with which its approach had been announced in our 
Lord’s prophecy.” 

The Bible events and allusions in connection with 
Jerusalem are so numerous that it is impossible in the 
limited space of a handbook to enumerate them. “The 
name Jerusalem is used eight hundred and eighteen 
times in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments” 
(Osborn). Moreover, most of the principal events are 
still associated by tradition with certain spots which were 


SITUATION OF JERUSALEM. 


29 


pointed out to us, and they will be referred to in the des¬ 
criptions of those places. No one reading the brief sum¬ 
mary of the history of Jerusalem, or the pathetic details of 
its fall, can help recalling some of those touching voices of 
prophecy which, like a long wail through the ages, have 
mourned for Zion. This is the burden of the Old Testa¬ 
ment : 

“How doth the city sit solitary, that was full of peo¬ 
ple! how is she become as a widow! she that was great 
among the nations, and princess among the provinces, 
how is she become tributary! She weepeth sore in the 
night, and her tears are on her cheeks. * * * She 

dwelleth among the heathen, she findeth no rest * * * 
And from the daughter of Zion all her beauty is de¬ 
parted. * * * Zion spreadeth forth her hands and 

there is none to comfort her” (Lam. 1. 1, 3, 6). 

And this, more pathetic still, is the burden of the New 
Testament: 

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the proph¬ 
ets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how 
often would I have gathered thy children together, even 
as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye 
would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate" 
(Matt. 23.37). 

Situation of Jerusalem is described thus: “Jerusalem 
is builded as a city that is compact together. . . . 

Peace be within thy walls and prosperity within thy 
palaces" (Ps. 122, 125). And of Zion is said: “Walk 
about Zion and go round about her; tell the towers 
thereof. Mark ye well her bulwarks, consider her pal¬ 
aces; that ye may tell it to the generations following" 
(Ps. 48.12). Solomon can find no metaphor stronger than 
“Comely as Jerusalem" (Sol. Song 6.4). 


Modern Jerusalem 

Most travelers have a feeling of disappointment on 
first seeing Jerusalem; its size is so much less than 
our imagination had pictured. Associated as it is with 
the grandest and most sacred events of history, it is 
difficult to feel that this little town, around whose walls 
you may walk in about an hour, is the Holy City. And in¬ 
deed, it is not; for the city whose streets Jesus trod was 
about a third larger. At that time Zion, a large part of 
which is now a ploughed field, was covered with palaces; 
and on every side, where now the husbandman pursues his 
toil, or desolation reigns, were magnificent structures 
befitting a great capital. 

One is surprised also to find how little remains of the 
ancient city. The present walls were built in the six¬ 
teenth century—only a few courses of stone in them 
belonged to the ancient walls. Its houses are all new, 
except that here and there a foundation course indicates 
an ancient period. The rock crops out in the Temple 
area, at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and on the 
brow of Mount Zion. But the City of Solomon lies 
buried under the debris of many sieges and captures of 
Jerusalem, you must dig from thirty to a hundred feet 
to any traces of it. Jerusalem that was, is “on heaps,” 
“wasted and without inhabitant.” Excavations have 
shown that the foundations of the ancient walls are, in 
some places, 130 feet below the surface. In digging for 
the foundation of new buildings, the workmen some- 


30 


SITUATION OF JERUSALEM. 


31 


times dig through a series of buildings, one above an¬ 
other, showing that one city has literally been built upon 
the ruins of another; and the present city is standing 
upon the accumulated ruins of several preceding ones. 

All this throws great doubt on many of the present 
sacred places of Jerusalem—the real localities lie buried 
far beneath the surface of the present city. But the nat¬ 
ural features of the country remain substantially un¬ 
changed. “The mountains round about Jerusalem,” 
which were of old her bulwarks, are still there. Here 
are Olivet and the brook Kidron, Zion and Moriah. 
Kings and prophets and holy men looked on these scenes, 
and the feet of the Son of God trod the ground on which 
we now walk. Somewhere in the buried city under our 
feet He bore His cross; and these hills trembled with the 
earthquake’s power when He expired. 

It is only gradually that the explorer finds out how 
much that is ancient—Jewish, Christian and Arab re¬ 
mains—can still be seen within and around the city. 

Jerusalem stands on four hills, once separated by deep 
valleys, which are now partially filled by the debris of 
successive destructions of the city. Zion, the most cele¬ 
brated of these, is on the southwest, rising on its south¬ 
ern declivity 300 feet above the valley of Hinnom, and 
on the southeast 500 feet above the Kidron. The Tyro- 
paeon sweeps around its northern and eastern sides, sepa¬ 
rating it from Akra and Moriah. Zion was the old citadel 
of the Jebusites, and “the city of David.” Mount Moriah 
is on the east, separated from Zion by the Tyropaeon, 
and from Olivet by the deep gorge of the Kidron. This 
is much lower than Zion; it was the site of the ancient 
Temple, and is now crowned by the Mosque. On the 
northeast is Mount Bezetha, a hill higher than Moriah, 
which, after the time of Christ, was enclosed within the 
walls by Herod Agrippa. Mount Akra lies toward the 


32 


JERUSALEM. 


northwest. It is separated from Zion by the Tyropseon, 
and from Bezetha by a broad valley running southward 
into the Tyropseon, as it sweeps around the foot of Zion. 
It will be seen, therefore, that the city slopes down from 
the northwest to the southeast; and standing on the 
northwest angle of the wall we are at the highest point, 
from whence Moriah can be seen far below on the south¬ 
east, with the Tyropseon on the west of it, running down 
between it and Zion to the junction of the Kidron and 
Hinnom. The wall of the city is irregular, conforming 
to the hills over which it passes, but substantially “the 
city lieth foursquare.” A walk around the outside of the 
wall commands a view of all the exterior objects of 
interest. 

Jerusalem, which stands on four hills, Zion, Akra, 
Moriah and Bezetha, was once ruled by the wicked King 
Herod, under Roman control, who shed so much inno¬ 
cent blood, and who killed so many good Christians. 
Rome, which stands on seven hills, Palatine, Capitoline, 
Quirinal, Viminal, Esquiline, Caelian and Aventine, was 
once under the reign of Emperor Nero, one of the most 
notoriously wicked characters of history, who, after anni¬ 
hilating so many Christians, forced thousands to seek 
shelter in the catacombs which extend beneath that city. 
The harrowing details of that period need not be re¬ 
counted, they are familiar to the world, besides which it 
is my purpose to confine myself to those descriptions 
and items of history which have a more direct bearing- 
on the course of my travels. 


Excavations in Jerusalem 


The difficulties connected with exploration in Jeru¬ 
salem are enormous, and it is impossible to sufficiently 
praise the unparalleled labors of Captains Wilson and 
Warren, Lieutenant Condor, and others, through whose 
undaunted courage and untiring effort so many impor¬ 
tant discoveries have been brought to light. 

An accumulation of the rubbish of ages has to be dug 
through in order to reach the sought-for material, and 
in one spot, the northeast wall of the Temple, worthless 
matter lay 125 feet deep. It must be remembered that 
the Jerusalem of today is built upon the remains of other 
buried cities. 

“One city literally lies heaped upon another. For 
Jerusalem stood no fewer than sixteen sieges from Jebus- 
ites and Israelites, Egyptians and Assyrians, Greeks and 
Romans, Mohammedans and Christians. The last, and 
twenty-seventh, siege took place in 1244 at the hands of 
the wild Karezmian hordes, who plundered the city and 
slaughtered the priests and monks. The explorers have 
thus to do not with one city, but with many. Jerusalem 
of our day may be considered the eighth, for even before 
the time of David there was a city there. The second 
was the City of Solomon, from B. C. 1000 to B. C. 597, 
a space of 400 years. The third, that of Nehemiah, 
which lasted for some 300 years. Then came the mag¬ 
nificent City of Herod; then the Roman city, which grew 


33 


34 


JERUSALEM. 


upon the ruins Titus had made; it again was followed 
by the Mohammedan city; and that by a Christian city; 
and now, for six hundred years, the modern city has stood 
on the ruins of those that preceded it.” So we can well 
conceive what good ground the Committee have to write 
thus: “Rubbish and debris cover every foot of the 
ground, save where the rock crops up at intervals. The 
rubbish is the wreck of all these cities, piled one above 
the other. If we examine it, we have to determine at 
every step among the ruins of which city we are stand¬ 
ing—Solomon, Nehemiah, Herod, Hadrian, Constantine, 
Omar, Godfrey, Saladin, Suleiman—each in turn repre¬ 
sents a city. It has been the task of the Fund to dig 
down to the rock itself, and lay bare the secrets of each 
in succession.” (E. Condor Gray.) 

Some of the difficulties of excavation work with which 
archeologists have to contend are the loose and shifting 
quality of the soil, which, being saturated with the sew¬ 
age of ages, is a cause of grave danger to the workmen; 
the opposition of the Moslems; interference of the Pasha 
and local authorities, and the natural indolence of 
Oriental workmen. Yet notwithstanding these obstacles, 
the work progresses and the results, which have been 
generally satisfactory, will occasionally be referred to in 
this description of the city. 


Present Size and Aspect of 
Jerusalem 

“The town itself covers an area of more than two 
hundred and nine acres, of which thirty-five are occu¬ 
pied by the Haram esh-Sherif; the remaining space is 
divided into different quarters: the Christian quarter, 


SIZE AND ASPECT. 


35 


including the part occupied by the Armenians, taking up 
the western half; the Mohammedans have the northeast 
portion; the Jews the southeast. The whole population 
is now about 75,000. The circumference is very nearly 
two and a quarter miles.” 

Jerusalem stands on a bald mountain ridge, sur¬ 
rounded by limestone hills, glaringly white. It is en¬ 
closed by walls averaging about thirty-five feet in height, 
and, although massive in appearance, are far from being 
substantial. Around the walls are thirty-four towers, 
and in the walls are eight gates, six open and two closed. 
The open gates are: 

(1) The Jaffa Gate, called by the Arabs Bdb-el- 
’Khalil —Gate of Hebron, or “The Friend”—on the west, 
leads to Hebron. 

(2) The New Gate, opened August, 1889, situated in 
the northwest portion of the town, between the Jaffa 
Gate and the Damascus Gate. 

(3) The Damascus Gate called Bdb-el-Amud, or Gate 
of the Columns, on the north, between the two ridges 
of the city, and leading to Samaria and Damascus. 

(4) The Gate of the Tribes, Bdb-el-Asbdt, or, accord¬ 
ing to the Franks, St. Stephen’s Gate, the reputed site 
of the stoning of Stephen, leading to Olivet and Bethany. 

(5) The Dung Gate, or the Gate of the Western 
Africans, Bdb-el-Mughdribeh, leading to Silwan (Siloam). 

(6) Zion Gate, or Gate of the Prophet David, Bdb 
en-Neby Ddud, on the ridge of Zion. 

The closed gates are: 

(7) The Golden Gate, Bdb-ed Dahdriyeh, i. e., the 
Eternal Gate, in the eastern wall of the Haram. 

(8) The Gate of Herod, called by the Arab, Bab-es- 
Zahery, i. e., the Gate of Flowers, opened occasionally 
for the benefit of the soldiers, who drill just outside it. 

Streets.—The principal are: “The Street of David,” 


36 


JERUSALEM. 


leading from the Jaffa Gate to the Haram; “The Street 
of the Gate of the Column,” runs from the Damascus 
Gate until it is joined by the “Street of the Gate of the 
Prophet David,” under which name it continues to Zion 
Gate; “Christian Street” runs from the Street of David 
to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre; the “Via Dolo¬ 
rosa” begins at the Latin Convent and terminates at St. 
Stephen’s Gate. 


Population and Religions 

The population of Jerusalem is variously stated. Re¬ 
cent estimates give it as at least 75,000. 

The Moslems are for the greater part natives. There 
are also a considerable number of dervishes connected 
with the Haram, and also a colony of Africans. 

The Jews number about 30,000 and are divided into 
two sections, the Sephardim, of Spanish origin, and the 
Ashkenazim, chiefly of German and Polish origin. The 
Jews in Jerusalem are mainly sustained by charity, Jews 
everywhere having sent contributions to their poor 
brethren of the Holy Land. Many have come hither in 
piety, and among devout Jews burial at Jerusalem has 
been looked upon as the great desideratum. There is 
“The Rothschild Hospital,” founded in 1855, which has 
done much good service. Sir Moses Montefiore’s mis¬ 
sion has been to assist the Jews, not by indiscriminate 
charity, but by giving them means and scope for labor. 
In January, 1875, being in the ninety-first year of his 
age, he resigned his position as president of the Board 
of Deputies of British Jews, and a testimonial to him 
having been resolved upon, he requested it might take 


RELIGIONS. 


37 


the form of a scheme for improving the condition of the 
Jews in Palestine generally, and Jerusalem particularly. 
About £11,000 only has as yet been contributed to the 
fund, although a much larger amount was anticipated. 
The reason for this smallness of contribution was that 
a rumor went abroad that the scheme was only to con¬ 
tinue idle Jews in idleness. Sir Moses Montefiore, at 
the age of ninety-two, went to Jerusalem, in company 
with Dr. Lowe, to investigate the real state of the Jew¬ 
ish community. He declares that the people are eager, 
and physically able, to work; that they have only lacked 
opportunity, and states that they are “more industrious 
than many men even in Europe, otherwise none of them 
would remain alive.” He proposes colleges, public 
schools, houses with plots of ground for cultivation, and 
proceedings are in progress to purchase land and build 
houses for this purpose, in and around Jerusalem. It is 
the younger generations who will derive most benefit 
from these plans; the habits of the older members of the 
community are too deep rooted for them to immediately 
accede to the radical changes proposed. The express 
object of the “Montefiore Testimonial Fund” is “the 
encouragement of agriculture and other mechanical em¬ 
ployments, among the Jews of Palestine.” 

There are several institutions already in efficient 
working order for the Jews in Jerusalem: The House 
of Industry, Girls’ Work School, and like institutions. 

The Greek Church flourishes in Jerusalem, having at 
its head the Patriarch of Jerusalem, who resides here, 
in the convent beside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. 
Fourteen sees are subject to him. The Greeks have 
about twenty monasteries in the neighborhood. 

The Armenians number about 300. Their patriarch, 


38 


JERUSALEM. 


who is styled Patriarch of Jerusalem, lives at the monas¬ 
tery near Zion Gate. 

The Copts have two monasteries, at one of which their 
bishop resides. 

The Latins number about 1,800. They have a Mon¬ 
astery, an Industrial School, two Girls’ Schools, and a 
Hospital. 

The Protestants have but a small, though exceed¬ 
ingly useful, community in Jerusalem. A Mission of 
Enquiry was instituted in 1820 by the Society for Pro¬ 
moting Christianity among the Jews. Dr. Dalton, the 
first missionary, came to reside here in 1824. In 1841 
the governments of England and Prussia entered into an 
agreement to establish here a bishopric of the Anglican 
Church, the diocese to embrace Mesopotamia, Chaldea, 
Syria, Palestine, Egypt, and Abyssinia. The church is 
on Mount Zion. In connection with it are two good 
schools, in and outside the city. The present bishop is 
Dr. Blyth. 

The evangelical work at Jerusalem presents many 
features of interest. The Krishona of Basle, a kind of 
lay mission, which seeks to propagate Christianity by 
means of artisans and tradesmen, whose callings give 
them ready access to the people, occupies several points 
in Palestine, has its center at Jerusalem, with branches 
at Jaffa and Bethlehem. The Deaconesses of Kaiser- 
werth have opened a real “Good Samaritan” establish¬ 
ment, which is open to every suffering human creature, 
of whatever faith. An orphanage and several schools 
are under the care of this noble institution. In con¬ 
nection with the Anglican Church there is a little Arab 
community, under the direction of a pastor from Alsace, 
whose chief mission-field is among the Jews. 

The Ophthalmic Hospital, under the control of the 
Knights of St. John of Jerusalem, is an excellent insti- 


HEALTH OF JERUSALEM. 


39 


tution situated on the Bethlehem road, near Jerusalem. 

Health of Jerusalem.—Speaking of the healthfulness 
of Jerusalem as a place of permanent residence, the late 
Sir Moses Montefiore, in the narration of his tour (1876), 
says: 

“I had some conversation on the subject of general 
drainage in Jerusalem with a gentleman of authority; 
he told me that all the refuse of the city is now carried 
into the Pool of Bethesda, which, strange to say, I was 
informed, is close to the house intended for the bar¬ 
racks, and the soldiers now living there appear not to 
experience the least inconvenience from its vicinity. All 
the doctors in Jerusalem assured me that the Holy City 
might be reckoned, on account of the purity of its atmos¬ 
phere, one of the healthiest of places.” 

The mean temperature, from 1874 to 1881, was, accord- 


ing to Dr. Chaplin: 

Fahr. 


Fahr. 

January . 

..48.4° 

July . 

.73.8° 

February . 

. .47.9° 

August. 

.76.1° 

March . 

. .55.7° 

September .... 

.71.5° 

April. 

. .58.4° 

October . 

.68.6° 

May. 

. .69.3° 

November . .. . 

.59.9° 

June . 

. .72.8° 

December .... 

.51.4° 


Pian of Description.—As there is no difficulty in find¬ 
ing one’s way about in Jerusalem, and the whole city 
is “compact together,” it is considered undesirable to 
describe certain “walks,” especially as it is impossible 
to make such a division correspond to the various tastes 
and inclinations of travelers. We shall therefore des¬ 
cribe: First, The Church of the Holy Sepulchre; sec¬ 
ond, the Temple, or Mosque of Omar; third, all the 
principal places of interest within the city, starting from 
the Jaffa Gate; fourth, a tour round the outside of the 
city; fifth, the environs. 















The Church of the Holy 
Sepulchre 

[The church is in the Christian quarter, in a street 
sometimes called Palmer Street] 

No one can approach this spot without reverence. 
It is the shrine at which millions have worshipped in 
simple faith, believing that here our Lord was crucified, 
that here His body lay, that here He revealed Himself 
after His resurrection. The question, which is now the 
great question of controversy, is this: The Calvary and 
Holy Sepulchre stand now in the very heart of the city, 
far within the present walls. Could the site ever have 
been outside the walls about 30 A. D. ? If it was, then 
this may be the very spot where the cross stood on 
Calvary, and the Sepulchre may be that which Joseph 
of Arimathaea gave, “wherein never man lay.” 

It is a pity to disturb the mind of the traveler on the 
threshold of such a sacred spot, and we have no inten¬ 
tion of giving more than a brief epitome of the various 
sides taken in the controversy. The scriptural account 
is as follows: 

“The bodies of those beasts whose blood is brought 
into the sanctuary by the High Priest for sin are burned 
without the camp. Wherefore Jesus also, that He might 
sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered with¬ 
out the gate” (Heb. 13.11-12). He was taken from the 
Judgment Hall “unto a place called Golgotha, that is to 
say, a place of a skull” (Matt. 27.33). The place where 


4Q 



CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE 
























































































. 










































CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE. 41 


Jesus was crucified was “nigh unto the city ” (John 
19.20), and appears to have been beside some public 
thoroughfare. “They that passed by reviled Him” 
(Matt. 27.39). 

The story of the removal from the cross and the 
burial in the sepulchre is given thus minutely in St. 
John’s Gospel: “And after this, Joseph of Arimathaea, 
being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the 
Jews, besought Pilate that he might take away the body 
of Jesus: and Pilate gave him leave. He came, there¬ 
fore, and took the body of Jesus. And there came also 
Nicodemus, which at the first came to Jesus by night, 
and brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about an 
hundred pound weight. Then took they the body of 
Jesus, and wound it in linen clothes with the spices, as 
the manner of Jews is to bury. Now in the place where 
He zms crucified there zms a garden; and in the garden 
a new sepulchre, wherein zms never man yet laid. There 
laid they Jesus therefore, because of the Jews’ prepara¬ 
tion day; for the sepulchre zvas nigh at hand” (John 
19.38-42). In the Gospel of St. Mark the additional 
information is given that they “laid Him in a sepulchre 
which was hewn out of a rock, and rolled a stone into 
the door of the sepulchre” (Mark 15.46). 

There is no historical evidence that the site of the 
Holy Sepulchre was determined until the third century, 
when it appears from Eusebius, that over the sepulchre 
had been erected a Temple of Venus. In the fourth 
century, the Empress Helena had a vision, in which she 
recognized the site, and by means of a miracle discov¬ 
ered the true cross. Constantine thereupon built a 
group of edifices over the sites, A. D. 326. These were 
destroyed by the Persians in 614 and rebuilt in 616. In 
936 fire partly destroyed the church, and the Moslems 
inflicted damage to it in 1010. The present church was 


42 


JERUSALEM. 


built by the Crusaders in 1103, to enclose the older 
chapels rebuilt in 1037-48. 

The history of the church has been so often recorded, 
and is such a lengthened story of vicissitudes, that it 
is out of the province of this book to enter into it 
minutely. (See the works of Robinson and De Vogue, and 
the Memoirs of the Palestine Survey, with Sir C. Wil¬ 
son’s Survey Memoir.) 

In favor of the traditional site of the sepulchre it is 
urged that an undisputed Hebrew tomb (now said to 
be that of Nicodemus) exists just west of the Holy 
Sepulchre itself. But the Rabbis (about 150 A. D.), in 
the Talmud, inform us that ancient sepulchres were 
known to be hidden underground within the walls of 
Jerusalem. 

As we enter The Court, which is a little lower than 
the street, we notice first the vendors of rosaries and 
relics, and a miscellaneous collection of beggars, more 
or less deformed. If any special service is going on, 
there is a guard of Turkish soldiers, stationed here to 
keep the peace between rival sects; if no special service 
demands that they should be drawn up in the court¬ 
yard, armed, they will be seen, as I saw them, in the 
porch or vestibule of the church. 

[The best Time to Visit the church is early in the morn¬ 
ing. It is generally closed from 10.30 to 3 P. M., but 
admission can be obtained during those hours on pay¬ 
ment of a fee. The morning light is the best for seeing 
the church.] 

Entering by the door on the left of the church—the 
principal entrance—the first of the many places of in¬ 
terest pointed out in this wonderful building, or series 
of buildings—is the Stone of Unction, where the body 
of our Lord was laid for anointing, when taken down 
from the cross. This marble slab is about six feet in 






INTERIOR OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE 



































































CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE. 43 


length, elevated slightly above the stone floor. The stone 
which so many thousand pilgrims kiss, is not the stone 
which tradition calls the Stone of Unction, that being 
buried beneath the present slab, which was placed here 
in 1810. Lamps and large candelabra hang over and 
surround the stone, and these belong to Armenians, 
Latins, Greeks and Copts, although this portion of the 
church is the property of the Armenians. 

A few steps to the left is a stone enclosed with a rail¬ 
ing. This is the Station of Mary, marking the spot 
where she stood while the body of Jesus was being 
anointed, or where she stood watching the tomb. A 
few steps further on, to the right, and we enter the 
Rotunda. The dome is sixty-five feet in diameter, and 
is decorated with mosaics. It is open at the top like 
the Pantheon at Rome, and is supported by eighteen 
piers. 

The Holy Sepulchre stands in the very center of the 
Rotunda. It “lies within a small chapel twenty-six feet 
long by eighteen feet broad, built of the Santa Croce 
marble. A long, low doorway leads to the sepulchre 
itself, the western chapel. It is very small, being only 
six feet by seven feet, or forty-two square feet in area, 
of which space nineteen square feet are taken up by 
the marble slab shown as the Tomb of the Lord. The 
slab is cracked through the center, and much worn by 
the lips of adoring pilgrims. The chapel, marble cased 
throughout, so that no rock is anywhere visible, is lit 
by forty-three lamps, always burning.” 

The sepulchre has two chambers, one, the vestibule, 
being the Angel’s Chapel, in the center of which is the 
stone which the angels rolled away from the mouth of 
the tomb. Then, through a low door, the sepulchre it¬ 
self is seen; the lamps belong to the different sects, four 
being the property of the Copts. The reliefs in the wall 


44 


JERUSALEM. 


are, in front, the Greeks’; right, the, Armenians’; left 
the Catholics’. Every day mass is said here. 

Whatever may be the emotions of the traveler, as he 
enters this most remarkable place in the world, he 
should at least tarry here awhile to observe, respectfully, 
the feelings of others; and no one can witness the pas¬ 
sionate devotion of pilgrims without emotion. 

Coming now into the Rotunda, it will be well to make 
a tour of all the notable places, and the following order 
is recommended: Just at the back of the Sepulchre, the 
west end, is the Chapel of the Copts, a very meagre 
affair, but their property since the sixteenth century. 
Near to this is the Chapel of the Syrians, beside which 
is a rocky grotto, with tombs, to see which a candle is 
necessary. Two of these are said to be the tombs of 
Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathsea. 

Returning to the Rotunda, we find on the north of the 
Sepulchre an open court with slabs of marble inlaid, and 
radiating from a central stone, where Jesus stood when 
He said to Mary Magdalene, who stood in the marble 
ring a short distance off: “Woman, why weepest thou?” 
And she, supposing Him to be the gardener, said unto 
Him: “Sir, if thou hast borne Him hence, tell me 
where thou hast laid Him, and I will take Him away” 
(John 20.15). This spot is the property of the Latins. 

Ascending now by three steps to the church of the 
Latins, we enter the Chapel of the Apparition, and in a 
fourteenth century legend it is asserted that here our 
Lord appeared to Mary after His resurrection. On the 
left is a painting of the Last Supper. On the right, an 
altar, and on it a stick, called the Rod of Moses; by 
putting one end of the stick into a hole over the altar, 
a stone is touched called the Column of the Scourging, 
to which Christ was bound when scourged by order of 


CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE. 45 


Pilate. This column was formerly exhibited in the 
reputed house of Caiaphas. 

From the door of the Latin Church, turn to the left 
into the Sacristy, where the sword, spurs, equipment 
and other memorials of the gallant Godfrey de Bouillon 
are shown. It is said that his tomb was once here, and 
also that of his brother Baldwin. The sword is one that 
was a favorite of Godfrey’s, and with which he is said 
to have split a giant Saracen in twain; it is the same 
sword with which the Knights of St. John are girt, when 
invested with that honorable order. Leaving this place, 
we turn to the left, past several columns and come to an 
altar under which are two holes in the stone; it is 
called the Bonds of Christ. Near it is a small chamber, 
called the Prison of Christ, where, it is said, He was 
incarcerated prior to the crucifixion. Continuing a few 
steps eastward along the aisle, we have, on our left, the 
Chapel of Saint Longinus, the centurion, who said, 
“Truly this was the Son of God.” The stone is pointed 
out on which it is said he was beheaded for preaching the 
Gospel. Others say that Longinus was the soldier who 
pierced the side of Christ with a spear, and when, of 
the water and blood which flowed from the wound, some 
fell on his blind eye, its sight was immediately restored 
and, as a result, Longinus became a good Christian. 
Near to this chapel is the Chapel of the Division of the 
Vestments. “And when they had crucified Him, they 
parted His garments, casting lots upon them what every 
man should take” (Mark 15.24). 

Near this chapel is a flight of twenty-nine steps lead¬ 
ing down into the Chapel of Helena, one of the most 
interesting of the many buildings of the church, inas¬ 
much as it is where the basilica of Constantine once 
stood. The massive substructions date from the sev¬ 
enth century, the pointed vaulting from the time of the 


46 


JERUSALEM. 


Crusades. Here is an altar to Dimas, the penitent thief, 
and another to Helena. Near it, to the right, is a niche 
in a low wall overlooking the cave below, and called 
the Chair of Helena, said to be the place where she sat 
when search was being made for the true cross. 

Descending thirteen steps more we reach the Chapel 
of the Finding of the Cross. The legend will be remem¬ 
bered of how the Empress was divinely directed to this 
spot; how she watched the digging until eventually the 
three crosses, with nails, crown of thorns, superscrip¬ 
tion, and other relics were found. It was difficult to 
make sure which of the three was the true cross, and 
at last a noble lady on the point of death was sent for, 
and as soon as her body touched the third cross she was 
immediately cured of her otherwise cureless malady, and 
thus the identity of the true cross was established. The 
commemoration of this event is called in the calendar, 
“The Invention of the Cross,” and is celebrated on third 
of May. 

“The Empress Helena had ordered a silver casting in 
which the Holy Cross was encased, and presented it to 
the Bishop of Jerusalem; but one piece of it she sent to 
her son, Emperor Constantine, at Constantinople, and 
another with a plate with engraved letters of command 
that Constantine build a church in Rome, which was to 
be called the Church of the Holy Cross from Jerusalem. 

“The Emperor Constantine then had a grand church 
soon built over the Holy Sepulchre and the Holy Cross. 
From the consecration and festival of this great church, 
is the festival called ‘Exaltation of the Holy Cross’ and 
celebrated on the fourteenth of September ever since. 

“In the commencement of the seventh century the 
Persians robbed the Holy Cross. The Christians then 
built several little churches over the holy places, which 
were destroyed by the Mohammedans, who took Jeru- 


CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE. 47 


salem in the year 636 and ruled it until the year 1099; 
then the Crusaders gained the victory and instituted a 
Christian kingdom, and they built up the Church of the 
Holy Sepulchre much larger than it had been. They 
built a second dome, combined with a large arch (Em¬ 
peror Arch), and on the left side a bell tower, which is 
there to the present day. The inside of this church has 
been mostly rebuilt since the terrible fire of 1808.” 

Continuing through the Church of the Holy Sepul¬ 
chre, the “Chapel of the Finding of the Cross,” which 
belongs (left) to the Greeks, and (right) to the Catho¬ 
lics, I saw in a slab a beautiful cross, a bronze statue of 
St. Helena and a Latin inscription in the wall. The 
steps we reascended were cut out of the rock, and 
sounded hollow; it is supposed that an old cistern lies 
beneath. 

Returning to the aisle at the head of the steps we 
found, at a few feet to the left, the Chapel of the Crown 
of Thorns. Here is a grayish column on which tradi¬ 
tion says our Lord sat while “the soldiers platted a 
crown of thorns, and put it on His head, and they put 
on Him a purple robe, and said, Hail, King of the Jews! 
and they smote Him with their hands” (John 19.2,3). 
A few paces west of this altar is a door on the right, 
through which we enter the Church of the Crusaders or 
Greek Church, larger and more gorgeously decorated 
than the chapels of any of the other sects. Here is the 
seat of the Patriarch, and reserved places for other dig¬ 
nitaries of the church, namely: Patriarchs, Archbishops, 
Bishops, Archimandrites (directors of convents), Ab¬ 
bots, Archpriests, Priests, Deacons, Under-Deacons, 
Chanters, Lecturers, and towards the east is the Chor- 
Absis, and a beautiful high altar. In the center of the 
marble pavement is a short column marking the center 
of the earth ; from this spot the earth was procured from 


48 


JERUSALEM. 


which Adam was made. It was also part of the Garden 
of Joseph of Arimathsea. 

In front of the Greek Church is the Holy Sepulchre. 
Returning, therefore, to the aisle by the same door 
through which we entered, and then to the right, we 
have before us a flight of eighteen steps, which we 
ascend and arrive at Calvary. It is fourteen and a half 
feet above the level of the chapel of the Holy Sepulchre. 
“And when they were come to the place, which is called 
Calvary, there they crucified Him, and the malefactors, 
one on the right hand, and the other on the left” (Luke 
23.33). And one of the malefactors addressed Him, 
saying, “If Thou be Christ, save Thyself and us. But 
the other answering scolded him, saying, Dost not 
thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? 
And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of 
our deeds: but this Man hath done nothing wrong.” 

As we learn the history and customs of the Holy Land 
we are better enabled to understand the Parables, and I 
will now tell what I think is meant by Paradise and some 
phrases of obscure meaning. 

The request made by the thief was favorably received, 
and Jesus gave His promise that the thief should accom¬ 
pany Him to a place which He called Paradise. According 
to what He told Nicodemus, it was not possible for such a 
man to enter His kingdom, for He said, “Except a man 
be born of water (baptized) and of the spirit (have re¬ 
ceived the laying of hands which signifies entrance of the 
Holy Ghost), he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.” 
The thief, then, having never been baptized had not the 
privilege of entering the Kingdom of God, but Jesus said, 
“To day shalt thou be with Me in Paradise.” We know 
that the majority of those people who believe implicitly 
in the Bible are of the opinion that the thief was per¬ 
mitted to enter Heaven and enjoy the presence of God— 


CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE. 49 


but have they correctly interpreted what is written? Let 
us examine what has been said and see if we cannot find 
a greater truth. 

While suffering the agonies of crucifixion, a conversa¬ 
tion was carried on between them, which will serve our 
purpose in opening up an investigation. 

“And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when 
Thou comest in Thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, 
verily I say unto thee, to day shalt thou be with Me in 
Paradise. ,, 

After the body of Jesus had lain three days in the 
tomb, the spirit again entered into it, the angels rolled 
the stone from the mouth of the sepulchre and the resur¬ 
rected Redeemer of the world came forth, clothed in a 
mortal body of flesh. Mary, who had so devoutly adored 
the Saviour, had come early to the tomb and, weeping, 
found that the body of her Master was no longer there. 
A voice spoke, saying “Mary,” and she turned and said 
unto Him, “Rabboni,” which signifies Master, and Jesus 
cautioned her, saying, “Touch me not; for I am not yet 
ascended to My Father: but go to My brethren, and say 
unto them, I ascend unto My Father, and to My God and 
to your God.” It thus becomes apparent that during the 
time that Jesus lay in the tomb His spirit had not been in 
Heaven, or in the presence of His Father, and this was 
also probably true of the thief. It must be conceded, 
therefore, that there is little reason to believe that the 
thief was saved. Jesus asserted that “To day shalt thou 
be with Me in Paradise,” and upon His return He in¬ 
formed Mary that he had not ascended to His Father. 
Hence it would seem that Paradise and Heaven are 
not synonymous and that Paradise is not the ultimate 
goal of the righteous. 

The question naturally arises, Where was Jesus during 
the three days following His death? Happily, we are 


50 


JERUSALEM. 


not left in doubt, for the Scriptures plainly show the 
nature of those duties which the spirit of Christ was 
called upon to perform while His body rested peacefully 
in the newly-made tomb of Joseph. Peter, to whom 
Jesus entrusted the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven, and 
who was first of the twelve Apostles, may safely be ac¬ 
cepted as an authority, and by turning to his Epistles we 
gain this information: “For Christ also hath once suf¬ 
fered for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring 
us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened 
by the spirit; by which also He went and Preached unto 
the Spirits in Prison” (1 Peter 3.18-19). Here we have 
an account of what He was doing during the first three 
days when the spirit was separate from the body. The 
thief at this time went to a prison world, where he had 
opportunity to hear Jesus preach the gospel of deliver¬ 
ance in common with other captive spirits, “which some¬ 
time were disobedient; when once the long suffering of 
God waited in the days of Noah” (1 Peter 3.20). 

With this clue, the words of Isaiah can be better un¬ 
derstood when he, addressing Jesus, said, “that Thou 
mayest say to the prisoners, Go forth” (Isaiah 49.9), 
and again he said, “He hath sent me to bind up the 
broken hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and 
the opening of the prison to them that are bound” 
(Isaiah 61.1), also “to open the blind eyes, to bring out 
the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in dark¬ 
ness out of the prison house” (Isaiah 42.7). 

These words of Isaiah support, and to a certain extent 
agree with, the words of Peter, relative to Jesus preach¬ 
ing to the “spirits in prison.” In the days of the flood, 
men who had failed to obey the commandments of God, 
and who had suffered for two thousand long weary years, 
were but fulfilling the penalty which the Saviour later 
demanded when He .said, “Verily I say unto thee, Thou 


CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE. 51 


shalt by no means come out thence till thou hast paid the 
uttermost farthing” (Matt. 5.26). And of that servant 
who neither prepared himself nor did according to His 
will, was said: “But he that knew not, and did commit 
things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes” 
(Luke 12.47,48). In what agony must these suffering 
spirits have waited, and with what joy must they have 
greeted the long-expected Redeemer, when He appeared 
and preached to them glad tidings of an Everlasting 
Gospel! Through its means alone might they hope to 
be delivered from the prison so long guarded by Lucifer, 
son of the morning, who is forever set apart from all 
others and who “made the earth to tremble and did shake 
kingdoms; that made the world as a wilderness and de¬ 
stroyed the cities thereof; that opened not the house of 
his prisoners” (Isaiah 14.16,17). 

How grand and glorious is the plan of salvation that 
the Creator has ordained for His children, reaching from 
eternity to eternity, covering in its details every possible 
emergency; controlling, guiding and directing their foot¬ 
steps while in a pre-existing state; teaching them while 
sojourners upon the earth, and extending beyond the 
grave into the spirit world, there to cause their hearts to 
rejoice and gladden under its kind influence, growing and 
increasing in might and majesty, power and glory, as the 
ages roll by, until the inspired words of our divine Mas¬ 
ter shall be fulfilled: “Every knee shall bow and every 
tongue confess.” 

Well might Jesus say to the Apostles just previous to 
His death: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, the hour is 
coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice 
of the Son of God; and they that hear shall live. * * * 
Marvel not at this; for the hour is coming in the which 
all that are in the graves shall hear His voice” (John 
5.25-28). Turning again to the epistle of Peter, we find 


52 


JERUSALEM. 


this assertion: “Who shall give account to Him that is 
ready to judge the quick and the dead. For this cause 
was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that 
they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but 
live according to God in the spirit” (1 Peter 4.5,6). 

Jesus upon one occasion, when explaining the Gospel 
to the Apostles, said, “Whosoever speaketh a word 
against the Son of Man it shall be forgiven him, but 
whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not 
be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the 
world to come” (Matt. 12.32). 

Within the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, at the east¬ 
ern end of Calvary, is an altar, under which is a hole 
through a marble slab to the solid rock. This was where 
the Cross of our Saviour was planted; two other holes, 
or sockets, right and left, are pointed out as the places of 
the crosses for the two thieves. Visitors are permitted to 
put their hands into these sockets. This is called not 
only Calvary, but the Chapel of Golgotha —Golgotha sig¬ 
nifying in Hebrew a skull—and a curious tradition affirms 
that Adam was buried here. “The legend has more poetry 
in it, than many, for one cannot but think that the idea 
in it is, that the blood of the atonement was destined to 
fall upon the head of the first transgressor.” Near the 
altar, to the right, is a long brass cover over a Rent in 
the Rock, said to have been made at the time of the 
Crucifixion. “The earth did quake, and the rocks rent, 
and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the 
saints which slept, arose” (Matt. 27.51,52). 

A little farther to the right is an altar with a picture 
of the Virgin, set in diamonds. All the adornments of 
this place are of the richest and most profuse description. 
It is a question of taste whether, supposing this really is 
the actual Calvary, it would not have been a thousand 
times better to have left it as the bare rock in the Temple 


CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE. 53 


has been left, strikingly significant in the beauty of its 
simplicity. To the south is a small chapel which we saw 
through a window. It is the Chapel of St. Mary, said to 
be the spot where the Mother of our Lord, and the be¬ 
loved disciple, stood at the time of the Crucifixion, when 
one of the most touchingly pathetic incidents in the Gos¬ 
pel history occurred: “Now there stood by the cross of 
Jesus his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife 
of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus there¬ 
fore saw His mother, and the disciple standing by, whom 
He loved, He saith unto His mother, Woman, behold 
thy son! Then saith He to the disciple, Behold thy 
mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto 
his own home” (John 19.25-27). 

Opposite this window, on a column in the center of the 
chapel, is a good painting of the Virgin and the Holy 
• Child. 

Descending now the stairs at the southwest end near 
the great door of the church, we turn to the right and 
enter a chapel under the Chapel of the Crucifixion, where 
used to be the Tombs of Godfrey de Bouillon and Bald¬ 
win I. In the eastern end there is an altar standing over 
—it is alleged—the Tomb of Melchizedek. The Rent in 
the Rock, which we saw in the Chapel of Golgotha, could 
also be seen from here by moving the brass which 
covers it. 

In order to visit the Church of the Armenians from 
this chapel, we turn to the west a few paces, past the 
Stone of Unction, and behind the Station of Mary is a 
flight of steps leading up to the small church, divided by 
pillars into three chapels or compartments. 

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is the joint prop¬ 
erty of the Greeks (who have the lion’s share), the 
Catholics, Armenians and Copts. Each of the sects takes 
its turn making processions to all the holy places, and 


54 


JERUSALEM. 


worshipping at the sacred shrines. Here are hundreds 
of beautiful golden and silver lamps different in form 
and design, hanging from the ceiling at different heights, 
and many of these burn constantly. “Some of those very 
large lamps are of solid gold,” said one of the Fran¬ 
ciscan monks, “they are gifts from princes, princesses 
and kings, and they burn only on a great holy day or 
for some special service.” 

On Easter Sunday afternoon our party went to the 
Church of the Holy Sepulchre to attend the special serv¬ 
ice held on that day. The number of Turkish guards 
had been doubled to insure the preservation of order be¬ 
tween sight-seers and worshippers and to keep a road 
clear for the expected procession, which, when it did 
appear, proved to be a magnificent spectacle. 

The traveler is recommended to visit the Church of 
the Holy Sepulchre as often as possible while he remains 
in the neighborhood. Some religious ceremony or festi¬ 
val is generally in progress and, no matter what may 
be his religious persuasion, some sense of awe and rever¬ 
ence must be inspired by the sight of these devout wor¬ 
shippers, pilgrims of many lands, who have wended a 
toilsome way toward these holy places. 

It is certain that this place, the site of the Crucifixion 
and of the Holy Sepulchre, shall never be forgotten. 
During the first century Jacob, younger Bishop of Jeru¬ 
salem, his mother, and many others were living, who had 
witnessed the death and entombment of our Saviour, and 
who could testify to the location of the hallowed ground 
on which these deeds had been enacted. Then, the 
Evangelist John, who was living in the second century, 
brought the facts to a younger generation and through 
the fervor of his preaching brought many new Christians 
within the fold of the Church. 

In the second century there occurred an uprising of 


CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE. 55 


the Jews against the Roman Emperor Hadrian, under 
Bar-Kochba 135 a chr., and Hadrian, who believed the 
Christians and Jews to be but different sects of the same 
religion, reviled the true church and showed his con¬ 
tempt for it in many barbarous ways. Finally, after 
great persecution of the people, Christians and Jews 
alike, the city of Jerusalem was razed, a new city built 
upon the ruins, and above Golgotha and the Sepulchre 
earth was heaped, paving stones laid and a monument 
erected to the Goddess Venus. The location was 
marked, however, by Eusebius the scribe, and he said 
that in the year 315 there were many processions of 
pilgrims who came to visit the holy places. Hironymus, 
at the end of the fourth century, said that so many 
bishops, teachers and martyrs had visited the same 
places, since the ascension of Christ, that he could not 
doubt that their knowledge was accurate. 

In the year 313 A. D. Emperor Constantine publicly 
acknowledged the Christian religion and he with his 
mother, St. Helena, made a journey from Constantinople 
to Jerusalem. They restored the site, and the Empress 
ordered the building of churches at Bethlehem and on 
the Mount of Olives, also the Chapel of the Finding of 
the Cross (see page 46) which is now within the Church 
of the Holy Sepulchre. 

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, which is built from 
the east towards the west, is 100-120 steps long, 60-70 
steps wide, and the whole covers a space of between two 
and three acres. 


The Temple 

Where once stood the Temple designed by King 
David and executed by Solomon, rebuilt and restored by 
Zerubbabel and Herod, is now the Mosque of Omar, 
called also the “Dome of the Rock,” or Kubbet es-Suk- 
hrah. It occupies a part of the spacious area known as 
the Haram esh-Sherif; “The Noble Sanctuary.” 

It is needless to say that nearly every inch of ground 
in this sacred enclosure, and almost every stone upon 
it, has been the subject of controversy. Many important 
points in the controversies have been recently cleared up, 
through the indefatigable efforts of the members of the 
Exploration Fund, and no doubt—now that so many 
scientific travelers visit the Holy Land, and the restric¬ 
tions upon visiting the holy places of the Moslems are 
gradually being relaxed—more light will be shed from 
time to time on the vexed questions which have arisen, 
for the most part, from mere surmises. 

Without giving an epitome of the questions at issue, 
the various arguments of those who have brought much 
learning and research to the study and identification of 
the holy places, will be referred to as the description 
proceeds. 

The Mosque of Omar stands upon the summit of 
Mount Moriah; tradition says upon the very spot where 
Oman had his threshing-floor; where Abraham offered 
up Isaac; where David interceded for the plague-stricken 
people, and where the Jewish Temple, the glory of Israel, 
stood. No one can stand before this magnificent build¬ 
ing, with its many colored marbles glistening in the 


56 


THE HARAM ESH-SHERIF. 


57 


sunlight, as once the “goodly stones of the Temple” 
shone before the eyes of the disciples, and not be moved 
with a strong emotion. One’s thoughts rush away to 
the past when psalmists wrote, and patriots sung, of 
the Temple’s glory. Hither the tribes came up; here 
shone forth the light of the Shekinah; here was the cen¬ 
ter of the religious, the poetical, and the political life of 
God’s chosen nation. And then one thinks of the defeats 
and disasters consequent upon disobedience; how glory 
after glory vanished, until alien powers desolated and 
utterly destroyed the holy place. One thinks of devout 
Jews in every land, oppressed and burdened, turning 
towards this sacred site, and remembering it with tears 
as they pray for restoration to their land. Above all, the 
Christian thinks of the little Holy Child presented there 
by the Holy Mother, of the Youth asking and answering 
questions; and of the divine Man, “teaching and preach¬ 
ing the things concerning Himself.” 

These, and not the controversial points, will probably 
be the kinds of thought in which the traveler will in¬ 
dulge as he stands for the first time within the precincts 
of the Haram. 

[There is now no difficulty in obtaining admittance to 
the Mosque except on great festivals. Application 
should be made to the Consul, who will send a kawass. 
The fees for admission are regulated by the size of the 
party, and it is a saving in expense to join, or form, a 
party.] 

The Haram esh-Sherif is surrounded by a wall 1,601 
feet long on the west, 1,530 on the east, 1,024 on the 
north, and 922 on the south, and is entered by seven 
gates on the west, the principal being the Bdb-es Silsileh, 

or the Gate of the Chain. 

Entering by this gate we have on the right hand the 
Mosque-el-Aksa, and before us are steps leading up to 


58 


JERUSALEM. 


the Dome of the Rock, or Kubbet es-Sukhrah. The build¬ 
ing has eight sides, each sixty-eight feet long, and the 
whole covered with richly colored porcelain tiles, and a 
frieze of tiles running round the whole building upon 
which are written passages from the Koran. There are 
four gates, or portals, facing the cardinal points of the 
compass. 

Tradition states that when Caliph Omar took Jeru¬ 
salem, his first inquiry was for the site of the Jewish 
Temple. He was conducted to this spot, then an enor¬ 
mous mound of filth and rubbish, and here he built the 
mosque which bears his name. Others claim that the 
present mosque was built by Abd-el-Melek in A. D. 686 

The interior is gloomy, and sometimes so dark that 
one has to wait until the eye grows accustomed to it. 
The interior has two cloisters, separated by an eight- 
sided course of piers and columns; within this, again 
another circle of four great piers and twelve Corinthian 
columns, which support the great dome. The fifty-six 
stained glass windows are of great brilliancy and beauty. 
The walls are covered with tiles, on which are inscribed 
portions of the Koran, as on the outer walls of the build¬ 
ing. The Dome is ninety-eight feet high and sixty-six 
in diameter, and is composed of wood. The pavement 
is of marble mosaic. It was restored by Saladin in 
1189 A. D. 

There are many things to see in this building, but all 
pale before the Sacred Rock immediately beneath the 
Dome; it is a bare, rugged, unhewn piece of rock about 
sixty feet long and forty-five wide. “The rock,” says 
Captain Wilson, “stands about four feet nine and a half 
inches above the marble pavement at its highest point, 
and one foot at its lowest; it is one of the ‘missse’ 
strata, and has a dip of twelve degrees in a direction of 
eighty-five degrees east of north. The surface of the 


THE HARAM ESH-SHERfF. 


59 


rock bears the marks of hard treatment and rough chisel¬ 
ling; on the western side it is cut down in three steps, 
and on the northern side in an irregular shape, the object 
of which could not be discovered. Near, and a little to 
the east of the door leading to the chamber below, are 
a number of small rectangular holes cut in the rock, as 
if to receive the foot of a railing or screen, and at the 
same place is a circular opening communicating with 
the cave.” 

A hundred Legends hang about the rock, Jewish, 
Christian, and Moslem. Here, according to the Jews, 
Melchizedek offered sacrifice, Abraham brought his son 
as an offering, and the Ark of the Covenant stood; on 
this rock was written the unutterable name of God, 
which only Jesus could pronounce. Some claim that the 
Circular Hole is the place through which the blood of 
the sacrifices poured, and was carried by way of the 
Brook Kidron outside the city. And the Moslems have 
strung together some of the wildest and most absurd 
of the many legends in connection with it. 

The Mohammedan legend of the rock is that when 
Mohammed ascended to heaven from here, on his good 
steed El-Burak, the rock wanted to follow, and started 
for that purpose, but was held down by the Angel 
Gabriel, the prints of whose fingers in the rock are still 
shown. Ever since then the rock, according to the same 
authorities, has been suspended in the air, and the hol¬ 
low-sounding wall is one that was placed there because 
pilgrims who passed under the suspended rock feared 
lest it should fall and crush them! 

The next building of importance in the Haram is 
the 


Mosque El-Aksa 

There is some doubt as to the origin of this building, 
or group of buildings, but it is generally supposed to be 
identical (in site, at least) with the magnificent Basilica 
founded by the Emperor Justinian in honor of the Vir¬ 
gin. De Vogue affirms that the present structure is en¬ 
tirely Arabian, but its form of a basilica, its cruxiform 
plan, and the existence of certain ancient remains, prove 
that it was a Christian church, and has been converted 
into a mosque. Others, led by Mr. Fergusson, deny that 
it ever was a Christian church, or that Justinian had 
anything to do with it, and affirm that it was built by 
Caliph Abd-el-Mekel, in the end of the seventh century. 
The Porch has seven arcades leading into the seven 
aisles of the Basilica. Captain Wilson has so minutely 
described the interior of the mosque, that we quote his 
words: 

“The porch in front, from two niches for statues still 
remaining in it, would appear to be the work of the 
Templars when they occupied the building. In the in¬ 
terior four styles of capitals were noticed; those on the 
thick stunted columns forming the center aisle, which 
are heavy, and of bad design; those of the columns under 
the dome, which are of the Corinthian order, and similar 
to the ones in the ‘Dome of the Rock’; those on the pil¬ 
lars forming the western boundary of the women’s 
mosque which are of the same character as the heavy 
basket-shaped capitals seen in the Chapel of Helena; and 


60 


THE HARAM ESH-SHERIF. 


61 


those of the columns to the east and west of the dome, 
which are of the basket shape, but smaller and better 
proportioned than the others. One of the small basket 
capitals was broken, and, on examination, proved to be 
made of plaster; the others of the same series seemed to 
be of similar construction, whilst the Corinthian ones 
were all of white marble. * * * The columns and 

piers of the mosque are connected by a rude architrave, 
which consists of beams of roughly-squared timber, in¬ 
closed in a casing of one-inch stuff, on which the decora¬ 
tion, such as it is, is made; the beams are much decayed, 
and appear older than the casing. All the arches are 
painted. Some of the windows in El Aksa are very good, 
but hardly equal to those in the ‘Dome of the Rock.’ 
* * * A great part of El Aksa is covered with white¬ 

wash, but the interior of the dome, and the portion im¬ 
mediately under it, is richly decorated with mosaic work 
and marble casing. The arabesques and mosaics are sim¬ 
ilar in character, though of different design, to those of 
the ‘Dome of the Rock.’ During the restorations made 
in the present century some paintings of a very poor 
order were introduced.” 

The principal objects of interest in the mosque are: 

The Tombs of the Sons of Aaron; a stone slab in the 
pavement near the entrance. It probably marks the rest¬ 
ing place of some distinguished Knight Templar. The 
Pulpit at the southern end is exquisitely carved in wood, 
and is inlaid with ivory and mother-of-pearl. It was 
made at Damascus by a native of Aleppo, and was 
brought here by Saladin. The wood is cedar of Leb¬ 
anon, and the work was ordered by Nureddin. Near 
the pulpit (west) is the Praying-place of Moses; and at 
the back of the pulpit, is a stone which is said to bear 
the imprint of the footstep of Christ. Close by here are 
two pillars, tolerably close together—so close, that only 


62 


JERUSALEM. 


medium sized people can pass between them. But every 
pilgrim is supposed to try; those who succeed are sure 
of a place in heaven; but for those who fail the case is 
doubtful! In the eastern end of the mosque is the so- 
called Mosque of Omar, a tradition affirming that he 
prayed there when he first entered the city. 

In the Mosque there is a cistern called the Well of the 
Leaf, the water of which is pure and bright. A curious 
Moslem legend attaches to this well. It is said that Mo¬ 
hammed delivered a prophecy that one of his followers 
should, while alive, enter Paradise. During the caliphate 
of Omar, a worshipper, one Sheikh ibn Hayian, came to 
this well to draw water, when his bucket slipped from 
his hands and fell in. He went down after it, and, to his 
infinite surprise, came to a door, which he thrust open, 
and found it led into a beautiful garden. He wandered 
about in it for some time, and then returned, but not until 
he had plucked a leaf, which he brought with him for a 
token. The leaf never withered, and the words of the 
prophet were fulfilled; but the door has never since been 
found. Devout Moslems still look upon the Well of the 
Leaf as one of the entrances to Paradise. 

Leaving the Mosque by the eastern door (at which 
place the boots of the visitors will be taken by an attend¬ 
ant), we proceed to the southeastern corner of the Haram 
and descend by thirty-two steps to the so-called Cradle 
of Christ, a small vaulted chamber to which many le¬ 
gends attach. It was here the infant Saviour was brought 
to be circumcised; here dwelt Simeon; here the Virgin 
was entertained for some days as his guest, etc. “There,” 
said the guide, “is the altar of Zecharias.” From this 
room we descend to Solomon’s Stables, a vast succession 
of pillared and vaulted avenues, bearing, as some sup¬ 
pose, all the marks of the builders of the first Temple; 
the beveled stones corresponding with the sculptured 


THE HARAM ESH-SHERIF. 


63 


representations of the stones used in the construction of 
Solomon’s Temple. Here, better than anywhere else, will 
be seen how the valleys were leveled up to make the vast 
platform for the Temple. Whether King Solomon’s 
stables were here or not cannot now be ascertained. It 
is stated 1 Kings 4. 26, “Solomon had forty thousand 
stalls of horses for his chariots”; and there can be no 
doubt his palace must have been somewhere close to 
this place, which was used as stables by the Knights 
Templars. I saw the rings to which their horses were 
attached. 

Returning to the Haram, and proceeding along by the 
east wall, we came to a stairway, and, ascending the 
wall, we got a remarkably fine view. Below is the Valley 
of Jehoshaphat, a mass of graves and memorial stones— 
the dead of all generations filling up the valley. It is the 
wish of all devout Jews to be buried here, for to this 
place will the Messiah come when the prophecy of Joel 
is fulfilled (3.2) : “I will gather all nations, and will 
bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and 
will plead with them there for my people and for my 
heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the 
nations, and parted my land.” “Let the heathen be 
wakened and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat, for 
there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about.” 
A good view is obtained of the Kidron, Absalom’s Pil¬ 
lar, the tombs of St. James and Zechariah, the Mount 
of Olives, Garden of Gethsemane, etc. 

A little to the north is the Golden Gate, or, according 
to tradition, the “Beautiful Gate” of the Temple, where 
Peter and John cured the lame man (Acts 3.1-11). There 
is, however, much more reason to suppose that it corres¬ 
ponds with the Gate Shushan, referred to in the Tal¬ 
mud. If so, “on it was portrayed the city Shushan. 
Through it one could see the High Priest who burned 


64 


JERUSALEM. 


the heifer, and his assistants going out to the Mount of 
Olives.” There appear to have been steps on arches 
leading down from this gate into the Kidron towards the 
east, and leading up again past the southern end of the 
present Garden of Gethsemane. It was through this 
gate, according to tradition, that our Saviour entered 
Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. It is now walled up, a tra¬ 
dition being extant that, when the Saviour returns to 
earth a second time, it will be through this gate He will 
make His triumphant entry into Jerusalem, and wrest it 
from the Moslems. 

Continuing by the east wall I saw a small Mosque, 
called The Throne of Solomon. It was here, says an old 
legend, that King Solomon was found dead. Looking west¬ 
ward, near the northern wall, is a small chapel, with a 
white dome, marking the spot where Solomon gave 
thanks upon the completion of the Temple. By going 
out of the gate at the northeast corner of the Haram, 
about half way between it and St. Stephen’s Gate can 
be seen through a breach in the wall the traditional Pool 
of Bethesda. 

Various Prayer Niches are to be seen, to which mar¬ 
velous legends are attached, and the foundations of a wall 
probably belonging to the Fortress of Antonia. The 
most beautiful structure in all Jerusalem is probably the 
Kubbet es Silsileh, or Dome of the Chain, said to have 
been the model for the Mosque of Omar. It is also called 
the Tribunal or “Court” of David. The tradition at¬ 
tached to it is that a chain was suspended from heaven 
and stood on this spot, and when two disputants could 
not settle a quarrel, the chain moved towards the one 
who had the right on his side, and so the litigation would 
be settled. Another tradition is that every witness in a 
great trial was brought here. If he could grasp the chain 
his evidence was true; if a link broke off, he was a per- 


TOUR OF THE CITY. 


65 


jurer. The Kubbet-el-Miraj, or Dome of Ascension, 
marks the spot where Mohammed ascended on his won¬ 
derful journey to heaven. 

One very interesting spot between the Dome of the 
Rock and El Aksa is a marble fountain, called El Kas, 
or The Cup, beneath which are vast reservoirs, and into 
them the water from the Pools of Solomon was conveyed. 
These reservoirs and the staircase by which they are 
approached are all hewn out of the solid rock. Was it 
here that Solomon placed the Brazen Laver? The cis¬ 
terns are called the Cisterns of the Sea, or the King's 
Cisterns. Solomon “made a molten sea , of ten cubits 
from brim to brim, round in compass, and four cubits the 
height thereof. * * * And the thickness of it was a 

hand breadth, and the brim of it like the work of a brim 
of a cup. * * * and it received and held three thou¬ 

sand baths” (2 Chron. 4.1-5). 


Within the City 

Start from the Jaffa Gate for Bab-el-Khulil (i. e., The 
Gate of Hebron, or the Friend). Jaffa Gate is on the 
west side of the city, close to the northwestern angle of 
the citadel. It is a massive, square tower, the entrance 
from without on the northern side, and the exit from 
within on the eastern. Entering Jerusalem by this gate 
a large open space is reached. On the left is a line of 
shops, cafes, etc., and on the right is the Tower of David, 
called by Josephus the Tower of Hippicus, and forming 
part of the citadel, a strong and conspicuous structure. 
The upper part of this tower has often been rebuilt, 
but the town is evidently ancient, the stones being of 


66 


JERUSALEM. 


immense size, and beveled after the style of the Jews. 
At this place David erected a fortress which was the 
stronghold of Zion in all after ages, and it is probable 
chat these immense stones belong to the earliest period 
of its history, and may have been laid by him. If it is the 
Tower of David, or the Tower of Hippicus built by 
Herod, or both, it was standing at the time when our 
Saviour was a visitor in Jerusalem, and His shadow may 
have rested upon it as He walked in Zion. Josephus 
says that Titus, when he destroyed Jerusalem, left stand¬ 
ing the three towers built by Herod—Hippicus, Phasaelis 
and Mariamne. Phasaelis and Mariamne have since 
been destroyed; only the Tower of Hippicus remains, 
lrom the top of which a splendid view of the surrounding 
country may be had, and it is regarded as one of the most 
interesting places in Jerusalem. “There is not one house 
standing on which we can feel certain that our Lord 
ever gazed, unless it be the old Tower at the Jaffa Gate.” 
(MacLeod.) 

Zion Street passes by the east side of the tower, run¬ 
ning north and south. We follow it south to the Gate of 
David, or Zion Gate, on the summit of the ridge of Zion. 
This height was held by the Jebusites until David took 
it by storm, and “David dwelt in the Fort, and called it 
the City of David” (2 Sam. 5.9). It was the highest 
point within the limits of the city, being 2,540 feet above 
the Mediterranean. Here, or hereabout, David’s house 
was built, the household for his families located, and 
here was placed the Ark of God before they built the 
Temple. “And David made him houses in the City of 
David, and prepared a place for the Ark of God, and 
pitched for it a tent” (1 Chron. 15.1,29; 2 Chron. 5.2, 
etc.). Opposite the gate is the Armenian Convent, one 
of the richest and largest in the city, with several large 
tamarisk trees in front, said to have been planted by 


THE TOMB OF DAVID. 


67 


Herod. Within the convent is the Church of St. James, 
the place where, according to tradition, St. James was 
beheaded. “Herod the King stretched forth his hands 
to vex certain of the church, and he killed James, the 
brother of John, with the sword” (Acts 12.2). The con¬ 
vent is capable of accommodating about 3,000 people. 
The monks are industrious and are adepts in all kinds 
of trade. They have in the convent a printing press, a 
photographic establishment, carpenters’ shop, etc. 

On Mount Zion, where the palaces of David and Solo¬ 
mon stood, the German Emperor obtained in 1898 for 
25,000 reichmarks (or six thousand dollars) a magnificent 
block of land, and presented it to the German Catholics, 
and they are erecting a great convent. 

A short distance from the church of the Holy Sepulchre 
is a German church, Die Erloesungs Kirche (or Church 
of the Redeemer), built by the gift of the German em¬ 
peror. His grandmother, Empress Augusta, had pur¬ 
chased the land on which the church is built and it was 
completed in the year 1898, at the time the emperor was 
in Jerusalem. 

Just outside Zion Gate is a modern ruin called the 
Palace of Caiaphas. It contains the tombs of the Armen¬ 
ian patriarchs. According to tradition, the prison oi 
Christ is here, and the stone which was rolled away from 
the mouth of the sepulchre (see page 43). It is also the 
place where Peter stood when he denied the Lord; and 
a small pillar was pointed out on which the cock stood 
when he crew to warn him! 

A little south of this ruin is a small mosque, known as 
Neby Daud, or the Tomb of David. It cannot well be 
doubted that this memorial marks the place, or at least 
the vicinity of the place, where the Hebrew kings were 
buried. That they were interred on Mount Zion is known 
with certainty, for it is said of the successive kings of 


68 


JERUSALEM. 


Judah, “they slept with their fathers, and were buried 
in the City of David,” which is only another expression 
for Mount Zion (see, 1 Kings 11.43, 14.31, 15.18, etc.). 
The notice in Nehemiah 3.16 represents the sepulchre 
of David as opposite a certain pool, and the present tomb 
stands exactly against the Lower Gihon, on the west of 
Jerusalem. The Apostle Peter speaks of the place of 
David’s burial as a matter of general notoriety. “His 
sepulchre,” he says, “is with us unto this day.” No 
reason can be assigned why the locality in that age 
should have become a different one from that which 
Nehemiah mentions. Josephus furnishes testimony to 
the same effect. From that time to the present, as often 
as we hear any Jewish witnesses on the subject, we find 
them connecting the national tradition respecting David’s 
tomb with this spot, and the Mohammedans and Eastern 
Christians regard it with the same veneration (Hackett). 

Learned travelers have, however, placed the Tomb of 
David in various other places, within and without the 
walls. In the fifteenth century, Benjamin of Tudela 
gave this legend: 

“Fifteen years ago, one of the walls of the place of 
worship on Mount Zion fell down, which the Patriarch 
ordered the priest to repair. He commanded to take 
stones from the original wall of Zion, and to employ them 
for that purpose, which command was obeyed. Two 
laborers who were engaged in digging stones from the 
very foundation of the walls of Zion, happened to meet 
with one which formed the mouth of a cavern. They 
agreed to enter the cave, and to search for treasure, and 
in pursuit of this object they penetrated to a large hall 
supported by pillars of marble, encrusted with gold and 
silver, before which stood a table with a golden sceptre 
and crown. This was the sepulchre of David, King of 
Israel, to the left of which they saw that of Solomon, 


THE TOMB OF DAVID. 


69 


and of all the Kings of Judah who were buried there. 
They further saw locked chests, and desired to enter the 
hall to examine them, but a blast of wind, like a storm, 
issued forth from the mouth of the cavern, and prostrated 
them almost lifeless upon the ground. They lay in this 
state until evening, when they heard a voice commanding 
them to rise and go forth from the place. They pro¬ 
ceeded, terror-stricken, to the Patriarch, and informed 
him of what had occurred. He summoned Rabbi Abra- 
ham-el-Constantine, a pious ascetic, one of the mourners 
of the downfall of Jerusalem, and caused the two labor¬ 
ers to repeat the occurrence in his presence. Rabbi Abra¬ 
ham hereupon informed the Patriarch that they had dis¬ 
covered the sepulchres of the House of David, and of the 
kings of Judah. The Patriarch ordered the place to be 
walled up so as to hide it effectually from every one, to 
the present day.” 

That is one version of the story, and here is another: 

“The so-called Tomb of David was originally a convent 
of Franciscan monks, who believed it to be the site of 
the Coenaculum, and their tradition mentions nothing 
of an underground cavern, such as is now said by the 
Mohammedans to exist. The tradition which makes it 
the Tomb of David is purely Moslem in its origin, and 
does not date back earlier than the time of El Melik ed 
Dha’her Chakmak, 1448. Oral tradition in Jerusalem says 
that a beggar came one day to the door of the monastery 
asking for relief, and, in revenge for being refused, went 
about declaring it was the Tomb of David, in order to 
excite the Moslem fanatics to seize upon and confiscate 
the spot.” 

In 1839 Sir Moses Montefiore was permitted to visit 
the mosque, and Miss Barclay, the daughter of the cele¬ 
brated American missionary, at a much more recent date, 
was allowed to sketch the tomb. She says, “The tomb is 


70 


JERUSALEM. 


apparently an immense sarcophagus of rough stone, and 
is covered by green satin tapestry, richly embroidered 
with gold. A satin canopy of red, blue, green and yellow 
stripes hangs over the tomb, and another piece of black 
velvet tapestry, embroidered in silver, covers a door in 
one end of the room, which they said leads to a cave 
underneath. Two small silver candlesticks stand before 
this door, and a little lamp hangs in the window near it, 
which is kept constantly burning.” 

Adjoining the Tomb is the Cosnaculum, or Chamber of 
the Last Supper. It is a plain room, divided into two 
parts by two columns in the middle, and with pointed 
vaulting in the ceiling. The place where the table stood, 
and where our Lord sat, is pointed out to the visitor. 
The room is 50 feet by 30 feet. In one part is a screen 
where Mass is celebrated by Christians; in another is 
a praying place for Moslems. On the wall which sepa¬ 
rates the Coenaculum from the Tomb of David many 
prayers have been written in many languages, the burden 
being, “Shalum,” or Rachel, or Mahmoud, “begs the 
prayers of David for his (or her) soul.” 

It is stated that when Titus destroyed Jerusalem, this 
building, with a few others near it, escaped, and that the 
earliest travelers to the land found it identified as the 
scene of the Last Supper. “If it really is the place where 
our Saviour met with His disciples, it is indeed a holy 
place, and, on the bare supposition, it cannot be contem¬ 
plated without a feeling of reverential awe. Nor can we 
wonder that the Christians in the city flock here on 
Maundy Thursday to see the Franciscans wash the feet 
of pilgrims in memory of Him, who in that place taught 
His disciples, how, in love, they should serve one 
another.” 

“And He sendeth forth two of His disciples and saith 
unto them, Go ye into the city, and there shall meet you 



CCENACUEUM (CHAMBER OF THE EAST SUPPER) 
























THE CHAMBER OF THE LAST SUPPER. 71 


a man bearing a pitcher of water; follow him. And 
wheresoever he shall go in, say ye to the goodman of the 
house, The Master saith, Where is the guestchamber, 
where I shall eat the passover with My disciples? And 
he will shew you a large upper room furnished and pre¬ 
pared: there make ready for us” (Mark 14.13-16). 

It is supposed that in this room the disciples were 
gathered when the Holy Ghost came upon them, and the 
significance of St. Peter’s reference to the adjacent Tomb 
of David will be readily seen. “Men and brethren, let 
me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he 
is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us 
unto this day” (Acts 2.29). 

Re-entering the city by the Zion Gate we pass close to 
the south wall, where formerly were the wretched huts 
forming the Lepers’ Quarter. A more awful spectacle 
than is presented by these poor creatures cannot be con¬ 
ceived ; they are cut off from association with the outside 
world, they are literally falling to pieces with disease, 
limb after limb becoming shapeless, or altogether lost. 
Some of the faces of these poor creatures are knotted so 
as to resemble bunches of grapes; in some the features 
are scarcely discernible. The disease generally attacks 
the throat, and causes them to make the peculiar sound 
which has such a heartrending sadness. It is only within 
the past two years that this quarter has been demolished. 
Doubts are entertained whether the present form of lep¬ 
rosy is at all like the disease so often referred to in Scrip¬ 
ture. The Leper Hospital was established in 1867. For 
an account of the law relating to Lepers, see Levit. 13. 

From a watch tower a short distance from the Lepers’ 
Quarter, there is a celebrated view which gives the trav¬ 
eler a better idea of the former positions of buildings, 
public places and general outlines than from any other 
spot. He will see the whole of the Mount of Olives, the 


72 


JERUSALEM. 


valley of Jehoshaphat, and the Kidron, separating Olivet 
from the city; the valleys of Gihon and Hinnom running 
into the Kidron, north of En-Rogal. South of Hinnom 
the Hill of Evil Counsel, with a modern house on the top, 
and a tree just beyond, on which it is said that Judas 
hanged himself, and, immediately below, the Tyropaeon, 
or Cheesemongers’ Valley, the subject of acres of paper 
and rivers of ink (see below). 

Following the course of the south wall, and descending 
towards the Cheesemongers’ Valley, we reach a small 
gate in the south wall, called the Dung Gate (Neh. 3.15). 
A pathway leads from here to Siloam; the modern name 
of the gate is Bdb-el-Mughdribeh , or Gate of the Western 
Africans. Passing through a jungle of cactus we reach 
the southwest wall of the Haram, where I saw some of 
the colossal blocks of stone used in the building of that 
wonderful structure. In the corner is a stone seventy- 
five feet above the foundation, thirty-eight feet four 
inches long, and three and a half feet high, and seven feet 
wide. Captain Warren sunk a shaft at this corner, to 
the foundation of the wall. A few steps north, and we 
saw the celebrated spring of the arch which connected 
the Temple with the city of Zion. It is called Robinson’s 
Arch, after the name of the great American traveler who 
discovered and described it, and rendered immense serv¬ 
ice in the elucidation of Scripture by his Biblical re¬ 
searches. 

The fragments consist of immense stones projecting 
from the wall near what is now the level of the ground, 
and it forms the spring of what he considered to be a 
spacious arch. The wall extends in an unbroken line 
from the Wailing Place to the arch, though it cannot be 
followed because of the houses which are built up against 
it; and, respecting the arch, it is curious to notice that 
the second course of the spring contains two stones, 


THE WAILING PLACE. 


73 


which seem to be two halves, split asunder, of one orig¬ 
inal stone of enormous dimensions. Whether Robinson’s 
conclusion was correct remained a disputed point, which 
the result of the Exploration has decided in his favor. 
Captain Warren sunk several shafts in a line west of this 
projecting masonry, and came upon a pier which sup¬ 
ported what must have been the west side of the arch. 
Beyond all question, at one period there must have been 
a bridge here, connecting the Temple with the southwest 
part of the city and spanning the valley between. The 
excavations also disclosed, at a distance of sixty feet 
under the present surface of the soil, fragments of vous- 
soirs, or beveled stones, lying where they fell, when, by 
some means or other unknown, the bridge was destroyed. 

By following for a few moments a narrow crooked lane 
to the north, and then turning to the right, the Jews’ 
Wailing Place is reached. There is a low wall on the 
west side, and on the east the celebrated wall of the 
Temple. It is composed of enormous blocks of marble, 
each fifteen feet long and three or four feet deep, with 
a rough paneled surface, and smooth beveled edge; five 
or six courses of this masonry at the bottom bear smaller 
stones higher up. Some of the lower stones may have 
been at some time disturbed, but many are as they were 
first laid. A strange congregation gather here every Fri¬ 
day afternoon, from three until five o’clock, from whence 
they go to their synagogues. “It is a strange place to 
stand in, the walls towering up so loftily, flowers grow¬ 
ing in the crevices, creeping plants swaying to and fro 
lazily in the idle wind, and at the foot, are the wailing 
Jews. Old men, with black turbans or caps, dressed in 
dingy, greasy gabardines, * * * the Hebrew Psalter, 

or some other sacred book in hand, the body waving to 
and fro, the lips muttering and wailing out lamentation 
after lamentation.” It is a libel to call this scene a “show 


74 


JERUSALEM. 


prepared for the benefit of visitors.” Jerome makes an 
affecting allusion to the remnant of mourners in his day 
who paid the Roman soldiers for allowing them to go 
and weep over the ruins of the Holy City, and they were 
no less sincere then than those who weep now over their 
“holy and beautiful house,” defiled by infidels. 

“Since the time when the tribe of Abraham went to 
Jerusalem, the city was called Holy City.” “There is 
something curious about Jews,” said a native of Jerus¬ 
alem. “At the time when Jesus gave the parable of the 
talents, etc., the political conditions in the Holy Land 
were then exactly as they are now. The Romans ruled 
and the Jews occupied the land, hating their rulers. Now 
the Arabs own the land and they hate their rulers, the 
Turks. Palestine was then a Roman-conquered province ; 
now it is a Turkish province, occupied by Arabs, the 
descendants of Abraham. 

“People say nowadays that God hasn’t kept His promise 
of giving the land to the Jews as an inheritance forever. 
He made no such promise; He promised it to Abraham 
and his seed long before there were any Jews, and so 
that seed has occupied it ever since. 

“There are the descendants of Ishmael and of the ten 
princes born to him, a multitude that no man can num¬ 
ber, who have remained in the country, the property de¬ 
scending from father to son through all generations, so 
that there are Arabs dwelling on the old inheritance, who 
can trace their genealogy in a true line back to pre-Israel¬ 
ite days. The Jews have been dispersed, according to 
prophecy, and now there is no country in the wide world 
where they cannot be found. 

“These Arabs, as well as the Jews, differ in attainments 
—physical, material and spiritual. Christ was crucified 
because He was teaching the people to become priests 


THE VIA DOLOROSA. 


75 


unto themselves, which was against the government of 
Rome and the Temple. 

“It is the same to-day—accusations are made that the 
Arabs are rising against the government, and their last 
appeal is to the Sultan, or as they term him, the supreme 
ruler in ‘that far country.’ ” 

Describing the conditions of travel to be the same as in 
the time of Christ (so far as accommodations for the 
native peasants are concerned): “When the Lord of the 
vineyard, described in parable, went on his journey to 
a far country, he called his servants, gave them certain 
trusts and told them to ‘occupy’ till he returned: That 
is they were to represent him in the management of his 
property: to do as he would do.’’ That is what Christ 
commanded when He went away. But are Christians 
doing it? 


The Via Dolorosa 

The Via Dolorosa of pilgrims, called by the residents 
“The Street of the Palace,” leads from the Serai, or 
Palace near St. Stephen’s Gate, to the Church of the Holy 
Sepulchre. It is a narrow street, roughly paved, but in 
some places is remarkably picturesque, with arches and 
pleasant studies of ancient houses and very old mason- 
work. No one can traverse its curious zig-zags and look 
at its “holy places” with indifference, as it is sacred 
with the tears of many generations of pilgrims, who, 
according to their faith, strove to follow in the footsteps 
of the Lord. As a mere hard and dry matter of fact, 
however, there is no historical evidence whatever for the 


76 JERUSALEM. 

sacred sites; the street was not even known until the 
fourteenth century. 

Starting from the Serai, or residence of the Pasha, we 
will visit the Stations of the Cross. 

(1) Pilate’s Judgment Hall.—The holy steps (Scala 
Santa) that led to the Hall, and were trodden by the 
feet of Christ, were removed to Rome, where I saw them 
in the Church of St. John Lateran. The spot from 
whence they were taken is, however, pointed out. The 
Turkish barracks are now here, and they stand on the 
site of the ancient Castle of Antonia. At the foot of the 
steps is: (2) The place of the Binding of the Cross upon 
the shoulder of Christ. Close by here is a Roman Catho¬ 
lic School, “The Sisters of Zion.” A few steps further 
on, where a modern arch spans the street, we enter, on 
the right, the Church of the Sisters of Zion—first by an 
iron gate, and then by a wooden door. By turning to 
the right, I saw, behind a very neat little altar, a part 
of the Ecce Homo Arch. Here we undoubtedly see some 
of the natural rock; and it has been ascertained that vast 
rocky vaults are below. The arch is said to have been 
connected with the Judgment Hall. “Then came Jesus 
forth, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. 
And Pilate saith unto them, Behold the man” (John 
19.5). Descending now into a street running north and 
south and turning to the left, is: (3) The place where 
Christ sunk under the cross. Pilgrims are not agreed as 
to this Station. The columns in the corner are said by 
some to mark the spot where they compelled one Simon, 
a Cyrenian, to carry the cross (Mark 15.21). Turning 
south to where another street joins, we bend sharply 
to the right, and in the corner of the wall, to the left, 
see an indented stone, marking: (4) The Impression of 
Christ’s Shoulder, as He leaned there for support. A 
few steps west, on the left, is: (5) The House of St, 


STATIONS OF THE CROSS. 


77 


Veronica, who wiped the brow of our Saviour, and His 
features became imprinted upon her handkerchief. On 
the left is the Russian Hospital, said to be over: (7) The 
spot where Jesus said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, weep 
not for Me, but for yourselves and your children” (Luke 
23.28). From here we follow up the street to where a 
minaret stands on the left, and by turning into a narrow 
lane on the right, a few steps bring us to one of the 
stones that would have cried out if the people had held 
their peace! A few paces west of the minaret a street 
comes in on the left, which we follow to where it is 
spanned by an arch. Here, in the wall to the left, was 
the old entrance to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. 
Here ends the Via Dolorosa. The remainder of the 
street is a Christian Street; the remainder of the Stations 
are within the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. 

There are two Stations omitted in the foregoing list— 
the spot where Jesus is said to have met His mother, 
and the spot where He leaned a second time and left 
the impression of His hand. Also in the Via Dolorosa 
may be seen the House of Lazarus, the poor man of the 
parable, and the House of Dives, the rich man. 


The Abyssinian Monastery 

is close to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre; from the 
Dome in the Court we saw into the Chapel of St. Helena. 
Here is an olive tree, which the monks point out as mark¬ 
ing the spot where Abraham found “the ram caught in 
the thicket,” and was offered in sacrifice in lieu of Isaac. 
The Abyssinians are a devout body of Christians, pas¬ 
sionately attached to the Sacred City, and they seem to 


78 


JERUSALEM. 


know of no higher felicity than to live and die where 
their Lord lived and died. 

[The Corn Market is in David Street, and it is said 
they give Scripture measure; and truly, I saw how they 
shake the measure, press it down, and cause it to run 
over. “Give, and it shall be given unto you, good meas¬ 
ure pressed down, and shaken together, and running 
over” (Luke 6.38).] 


The Church of St. Anne 

is one of the “Holy Places” of Jerusalem. It is situated 
at the eastern end of the Via Dolorosa, near to St. 
Stephen’s Gate. It was founded in the seventh century, 
was rebuilt in the twelfth century, converted by Saladin 
into a school, and in 1856 was presented by the Sultan 
to the Emperor of the French (Napoleon III.) at the 
close of the Crimean War. It is said to mark the dwell¬ 
ing-place of St. Anne, the mother of the Virgin; to have 
been the birth-place of the Holy Mother; the burial-place 
of her father, Joachim, etc., etc. 

“St. Anne left a big sum of money as a fund to this 
beautiful little church,” said a native of Jerusalem, 
“which was to be used only to cover the expenses of 
the church.” 

Round the court of this church are many pepper trees. 


Valley of Hinnom 

“There is something in the scenery of this valley and 
the hill above it; its tombs hewn in the rock, long since 
tenantless; the gray gloom of its old fig and olive trees 
starting from the fissures of the crags; the overhanging 
wall of Zion, desolate almost as in the time of her cap¬ 
tivity, that forcibly recall the wild and mournful gran¬ 
deur of the prophetic writings. Within it, too, is the tra¬ 
ditionary Aceldama, or Field of Blood of the traitor 
Judas; a small plot of ground, overhung with one preci¬ 
pice and looking down another into the glen below, on 
which is a deep charnel-house, into which it was formerly 
the custom to throw the bodies of the dead, as the earth 
was supposed to have the power of rapidly consuming 
them. The place was selected as the burial place of pil¬ 
grims who died at Jerusalem in the Middle Ages. Such 
are the scenes that have passed in Hinnom; it is like the 
scroll of the prophet, ‘written within and without with 
mourning, lamentation and woe’ ” (Bartlett’s Walks 
about Jerusalem). 

Ackeldame is on the southern face of the valley at the 
eastern end. There is, however, no historical proof of 
this being identical with the “Potters’ Field,” and it is 
known that various sites have, at different times, been 
pointed out as the spot where Judas met his death. When 
the traitor took back the thirty pieces of silver and “cast 
them down in the Temple, and went and hanged himself, 


79 


80 


JERUSALEM. 


the chief priests took the silver and said, It is not lawful 
for to put them into the treasury, because it is the price 
of blood. And they took counsel, and bought with them 
the Potters’ Field, to bury strangers in, wherefore that 
field was called The Field of Blood unto this day” (Matt. 
27.3-10; Acts 1.18,19). 

There are many tombs all round about, some of them 
of hermits, who dwelt here in very early times ; some of 
Crusaders, and some are of recent date. Many of the tombs 
have beautifully decorated entrances, and some bear in¬ 
scriptions. There is one tomb called The Apostles’ Cav¬ 
ern, from a legend that when the disciples “all forsook 
Him and fled,” they came and hid themselves here. 

This hill is also called the Hill of Evil Counsel, from 
a tradition that in the country house of Caiaphas, the 
high priest met the Jews and they took counsel how they 
might put Him to death. The tradition only dates from 
the fourteenth century. 


Tomb of Absalom and Tombs 
of the Prophets 

Up the valley north of Silwan, on the right, is the 
Jews’ Cemetery. The ground is covered with tombstones 
from the Kidron, half way up the Mount of Olives. On 
the right of the path are three well-known buildings in 
the Valley of Jehoshaphat, erected in the Graeco-Roman 
style, popularly called the Tombs of Zechariah, St. James 
and Absalom. That of Zechariah is a square structure 
of stone, with four pilasters on each side, and a roof of 
pyramidal shape. “To call this building,” as Fergusson 
justly remarks, “a tomb, is evidently a misnomer, as it 
is absolutely solid, hewn out of the living rock by cutting 


THE MOUNT OF OLIVES. 


81 


a passage round it. It has no internal chambers, nor 
even the semblance of a doorway.” The tomb of St. 
James is composed of a veranda or screen, cut out of the 
rock with two Doric columns, supporting the entabla¬ 
ture ; at the back of which are extensive excavations con¬ 
taining loculi. The tomb of Absalom is an elaborate 
building, square, with columns, in partial relief, standing 
out against the wall. There is a smaller square of 
masonry above the Ionic cornice, and over that is a cir¬ 
cular block, with a singular round tapering roof. The 
inside, I saw, is now blocked up with stones, thrown in 
according to Arab fashion of execrating the memory of 
David’s ungrateful son; and by the same means a se¬ 
pulchral cavern behind, styled the tomb of Jehoshaphat, 
is hidden from view. The date of these structures is 
unknown. No one can reasonably suppose that the tomb 
which bears his name is identical with the pillar of Ab¬ 
salom’s grave, in the King’s Dale. Still, it is not impos¬ 
sible that it may stand on or near the site of that memo¬ 
rial ; for by the King’s Dale probably is meant the valley 
in which this remarkable structure is placed. 


The Mount of Olives 

Up the Mount of Olives, and near the top, we turn to 
the right a few steps, and visit the Tombs of the 
Prophets. They are on the western part of the Mount of 
Olives, and constitute catacombs, winding in a semi¬ 
circular form, with numerous loculi on the sides. Proba¬ 
bly the catacombs here were at first natural, and were 
then extended and adapted by art; and, like some of the 


82 JERUSALEM. 

catacombs at Rome, they have been left in an unfinished 
state. 

Continuing our walk as far as Bethany, we will find 
the following extract from Stanley to give a vivid des¬ 
cription of the sacred scenes around us, and take us back 
to the days of yore: 

“In the morning He set forth on His journey. Three 
Pathways lead, and very probably always led, from 
Bethany to Jerusalem; one, a long circuit over the north¬ 
ern shoulder on Mount Olivet, down the valley which 
parts it from Scopus; another, a steep footpath over the 
summit; the third, the natural continuation of the road 
by which mounted travelers always approach the city 
from Jericho, over the southern shoulder, between the 
summit which contains the Tombs of the Prophets and 
that called the Mount of Offence. There can be no doubt 
that this last is the road of the Entry of Christ, not only 
because, as just stated, it is, and must always have been, 
the usual approach for horsemen and for large caravans, 
such as then were concerned, but also because this is 
the only one of the three approaches which meets the 
requirements of the narrative which follows. Two vast 
streams of people met on that day. The one poured out 
from the city, and as they came through the gardens 
whose clusters of palm rose on the southern corner of 
Olivet, they cut down the long branches, as was their 
wont at the Feast of Tabernacles, and moved upwards 
towards Bethany, with loud shouts of welcome. From 
Bethany streamed forth the crowds who had assembled 
there on the previous night, and who came testifying to 
the great event at the sepulchre of Lazarus. The road 
soon loses sight of Bethany. It was formerly a rough 
mountain track, but is now a broad, well-made carriage 
drive; a steep declivity below on the left; the sloping 
shoulder of Olivet above on the right; fig trees below 


THE MOUNT OF OLIVES. 


83 


and above, here and there growing out of the rocky soil. 
Along the road the multitudes threw down the branches 
cut off from the olive trees through which they were 
forcing their way, or spread out a rude matting, formed 
of the palm branches which they had already cut as they 
came out. The larger portion—those perhaps who had 
escorted Him from Bethany—unwrapped their loose 
cloaks from their shoulders, and stretched them along 
the rough path, to form a momentary carpet as He ap¬ 
proached. 

“The two streams met mid-way. Half of the vast 
mass, turning round, preceded; the other half followed. 
Gradually the long procession swept up and over the 
ridge, where first begins ‘the descent of the Mount of 
Olives/ towards Jerusalem. At this point the first View 
is caught of the southeastern corner of the city. The 
Temple, and the more northern portions, are hidden by 
the slope of Olivet on the right, what is seen is only 
Mount Zion, now for the most part a rough field, crowned 
with the Mosque of David and the angle of the western 
walls, but then covered with houses to its base, sur¬ 
mounted by the Castle of Herod, on the supposed site of 
the palace of David, from which that portion of Jeru¬ 
salem, emphatically ‘The City of David/ derived its name. 
It was at this precise point, ‘as He drew near, at the 
descent of the Mount of Olives’—may it not have been 
from the sight thus opening upon them?—that the hymn 
of triumph, the earliest hymn of Christian devotion, 
burst forth from the multitude, ‘Hosanna to the Son of 
David; blessed is He that cometh in the name of the 
Lord. Blessed is the kingdom that cometh of our father 
David. Hosanna * * * peace * * * Glory in 
the highest!’ There was a pause as the shout rang 
through the long defile; and as the Pharisees who stood 
by in the crowd complained, He pointed to the ‘stones’ 


84 


JERUSALEM. 


which, strewn beneath their feet, would immediately ‘cry 
out if these were to hold their peace.’ 

“Again the procession advanced. The road descends 
a slight declivity, and the glimpse of the city is again 
withdrawn behind the intervening ridge of Olivet. A 
few moments, and the path mounts again; it climbs a 
rugged ascent, it reaches a ledge of smooth rock, and in 
an instant the whole city bursts into view. As now the 
dome of the Mosque El-Aksa rises like a ghost from the 
earth before the traveler, so then must have risen the 
Temple tower; as now the vast enclosure of the Mussul¬ 
man sanctuary, so then must have spread the Temple- 
courts ; as now the gray town on its broken hills, so then 
the magnificent city, with its background—long since 
vanished away—of gardens and suburbs on the western 
plateau behind. 

“Immediately below was the Valley of the Kidron, here 
seen in its greatest depth as it joins the Valley of Hinnom, 
and thus giving full effect to the great peculiarity of Jeru¬ 
salem seen only on its eastern side—its situation as of a 
city rising out of a deep abyss. It is hardly possible to 
doubt that this rise and turn of the road, this rocky ledge, 
was the exact point where the multitude paused again, and 
He, ‘when He beheld the city, wept over it.’ 

“Nowhere else on the Mount of Olives is there a view 
like this. By the two other approaches above men¬ 
tioned, over the summit and over the northern shoulder 
of the hill, the city reveals itself gradually; there is no 
partial glimpse, like that which has been just described, 
as agreeing so well with the first outbreak of popular 
acclamation; still less is there any point where, as here, 
the city and Temple would suddenly burst into view, 
producing the sudden and affecting impression described 
in the Gospel narrative. And this precise coincidence is 
the more remarkable, because the traditional route of the 


THE MOUNT OF OLIVES. 


85 


Triumphal Entry is over the summit of Olivet, and the 
traditional spot of the lamentation is at a place half way 
down the mountain, to which the description is wholly 
inapplicable, whilst no tradition attaches to this, the only 
road by which a large procession could have come, and 
this, almost the only spot of the Mount of Olives which 
the Gospel narrative fixes with exact certainty, is almost 
the only unmarked spot—undefiled or unhallowed by 
mosque or church, chapel or tower—left to speak for 
itself, that here the Lord stayed His onward march, and 
here His eyes beheld what is still the most impressive 
view which the neighborhood of Jerusalem furnishes, and 
the tears rushed forth at the sight”—Stanley. 

A short distance north of the Tombs of the Prophets, 
on the Center Summit of the Mount of Olives, is a small 
modern village. “The top of the Mount is not level, but 
it is notched with three summits, the middle one of which 
is the highest, on which stands the Chapel of Ascension.” 
The large building, belonging to the Mohammedans, 
stands on a site which, from the earliest date, has been 
shown as the place from whence Our Lord ascended to 
heaven. There is a large courtyard, and in the center 
a small octagonal chapel, with a footprint of Christ. 
There is a remarkable echo in this chapel, and a hymn 
sung softly with the proper harmonies, produces an ex¬ 
traordinarily beautiful effect. The great interest, how¬ 
ever, of the place is the view from the Minaret which 
ought to be seen again and again. 

Very briefly the chief items of the view may be thus 
summed up: The Holy City lies like a map before us. 
In the southeast quarter is the Mosque of Omar, standing 
in the center of the raised platform, or Haram, where 
Solomon’s Temple once stood. To the south of it is El- 
Aksa, once a Christian church built by Justinian. At the 
northwest corner of the Temple are the Turkish barracks, 


86 


JERUSALEM. 


where the Castle of Antonia stood. North of the Temple, 
or the southeastern quarter of the city, is the hill Beze- 
tha; and on it, near St. Stephen’s Gate, the Church of 
St. Anne. West of Bezetha is the hill of Akra, which 
is the northwest quarter of the city, and on its eastern 
slope stands the Church of the Holy Sepulchre; a little 
to the southeast of it are the ruins of the Hospital of the 
Knights of St. John. The hill west of Mount Moriah, or 
the southwest quarter of the city, is Mount Zion; the 
Tower of David, or Hippicus, stands near the Jaffa Gate, 
and over it waves the Turkish flag. Southeast of the 
tower is the English church, and south of that the Ar¬ 
menian Convent, with a white dome. East of the 
convent is the Jewish Quarter, with the two syn¬ 
agogues, one with a green and one with a white dome. 
On the top of Zion, south of the wall, is a cluster of build¬ 
ings; in the midst the black dome marks the Tomb of 
David. Turning eastward we see the mountains of Moab 
and Gilead, and the Jordan Valley, the course of the 
river marked by the dark line of vegetation. South, we 
see in the distance, the round topped Frank Mountain; 
nearer, almost below, the Hill of Evil Counsel; to the 
west of that the Valley of Rephaim. Near the northwest 
corner of Jerusalem are the Russian buildings, and be¬ 
yond Neby Samwil (Mizpeh). 

Neby Samwil, or Mizpeh, of the Old Testament, was 
a city in Benjamin (Joshua 18.26), and here the great 
national assemblies of Israel were held in the time of 
the Judges. “Then all the children of Israel went out, 
and the congregation was gathered together as one man, 
from Dan even to Beersheba, with the land of Gilead, 
unto the Lord in Mizpeh” (Judges 20.1). 

When Samuel mourned over the sins of Israel, he said, 
“Gather all Israel to Mizpeh, and I will pray for you 
unto the Lord. And they gathered together to Mizpeh” 


THE MOUNT OF OLIVES. 


87 


(1 Sam. 12.5,6). One of the most remarkable scenes in 
Mizpeh was when a young man was brought hither, and 
“when he stood among the people he was higher than 
any of the people from his shoulders and upwards * * 

* and all the people shouted and said, God save the 
king” (1 Sam. 10.24,25), and Saul became their king. 
It was between Mizpeh and Shen that “Samuel took a 
stone * * * and called the name of it Ebenezer, say¬ 

ing Hitherto the Lord hath helped us” (1 Sam. 7.6-12). 
The town was fortified by Asa (1 Kings 15.22). Gedaliah 
was assassinated here (2 Kings 25.23-25) ; and when, in 
the time of Nehemiah, the wall of Jerusalem was rebuilt, 
the men of Mizpeh joined with the men of Gibeon in 
rebuilding one portion of the wall (Neh. 3.7, 15, 19). 

Continuing on the Mount of Olives, the view from the 
Minaret above mentioned, the northern ridge of Olivet is 
Scopus, beyond which is a small village among olive trees 
named Shafat. To the right of it is a hill, the ancient 
Nob, and two miles beyond, Gibeah, the home of Saul; 
three miles further north is Ramah, the birthplace of 
Samuel, and three miles beyond that Bireh, the ancient 
Beeroth—one of the four Hivite or Gibeonite cities that 
made the league with Joshua (Joshua 9.17). Such is a 
brief catalogue of the view, the most wonderful and 
interesting in all the world. 

The summit of Olivet is about two hundred feet above 
the city of Jerusalem; and on the south of the summit is 
a Roman Catholic church, “The Church of Pater Noster,” 
the traditional spot where our Lord taught His disciples 
the “Lord’s Prayer.” A French princess (the Princess 
Latour d’Auvergne) has caused a curious new building 
to be erected here. In the court are thirty-six panels, 
with the Lord’s Prayer written in thirty-six different 
languages, so that pilgrims from all parts of the world 
can read the prayer in their own language. 


88 


JERUSALEM. 


Near the foot of the mountain lies the Garden of 
Gethsemane. Beyond and about four hundred feet below 
us the little Brook Kidron trickled through the narrow 
Valley of Jehoshaphat. 

In order to continue the Tour of the places of interest 
outside the Walls of Jerusalem, we descend, from the 
Mount of Olives by the northern road, the way which 
David ascended when he fled from Absalom. “And 
David went up by the ascent of Mount Olivet, and wept 
as he went, and had his head covered, and he went bare¬ 
foot” (2 Sam. 15.30). 

On the western slope of Olivet, near the Brook Kid¬ 
ron, is the 


Garden of Gethsemane 

The space enclosed is about one-third of an acre, and 
is surrounded by a wall covered with some kind of a 
plaster. The wall is about eleven feet high. Within the 
enclosure the garden is surrounded by an iron fence. 
Between the stone wall and the iron railing is a wide 
path. The tradition which places it here is of consider¬ 
able antiquity. Eusebius, Bishop of Caesarea, speaks of 
the garden as well known; Jerome repeats the same tes¬ 
timony. It is entered by a gate kept under lock and key, 
under the control of the Franciscans. Within the garden 
are eight olive trees which are undoubtedly of great age, 
and may have sprung from the roots of those which were 
here in the time of our Lord, and may even be the orig¬ 
inal trees. These trees are about thirty-five feet in cir¬ 
cumference. Small, sanctified pictures, fourteen in all, 
representing the fourteen traditionary stations of Christ, 



GARDEN OF GETHSEMANE—ONE OF THE ANCIENT OLIVE TREES, 
UNDER WHICH JESUS PRAYED. 






GARDEN OF GETHSEMANE. 


89 


are painted on the walls. The Franciscan monks point 
out the Chapel of the Agony, in a cave; the rocky place 
where the disciples slept; the spot where Judas gave the 
kiss of betrayal. 

In the middle of the Garden a wealthy American lady 
is buried. Over her tomb is the inscription: “Adeline 
Whelan from Washington, was buried here in 1875.” 
“That was the lady who built the well in the center of 
this garden,” explained the monk, “and the fountain sup¬ 
plies water for moistening the ground and cultivating a 
few flowers.” This Garden is the property of the Cath¬ 
olics. As we were leaving the old Franciscan brother 
handed to me a bouquet of flowers and our conductor 
presented us with some leaves from the ancient olive 
trees, which he had received from the old Franciscan 
monk. “Jesus went over the Brook Kidron with His dis¬ 
ciples, where there was a garden into which He entered” 
(Matt. 26.36; Mark 14.32). 

A writer, who looks upon this as the veritable scene of 
the agony and betrayal, an opinion which is shared by 
many eminent travelers and writers, says: “Over there 
in Jerusalem His body was crucified; but here was the 
scene of the crucifixion of His soul. There the letter of 
the law was executed, but here the awful weight of its 
spirit was borne. There he drank the dregs of sorrow, 
but here the ‘full cup’ was wrung out of Him. Here the 
enemy who had departed from Him for a season, returned 
with all the powers of hell to overthrow the Son of Man. 
Here his ‘own familiar friend’ betrayed Him. Here the 
Captain of our Salvation was made perfect through suf¬ 
fering, and from this place, broken hearted as He was, 
with the Cross before Him, and a heavier cross upon 
Him, He rose up from the garden and went forth to die. 
‘Take off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place where¬ 
on thou standest is holy ground.’ ” 


90 


JERUSALEM. 


“On over Olivet is a steep path up and down which 
late in the evening or early in the morning Jesus walked 
to and from His ministry in Jerusalem. For it is not 
written that Jesus ever spent a night in that city, until 
that night when He was dragged up there before the 
judgment-seat. When the evening came and the disci¬ 
ples went to their own homes, Jesus went out to the 
Mount of Olives to spend the night in prayer, or to the 
quiet village of Bethany (page 131), where awaited 
Him restful welcome from the three friends He loved. 
In Bethany was a home honored above all others by the 
frequent visits of the Son of God, a home where our 
Saviour and His disciples found welcome and rest and 
entertainment. In Bethany the sisters spread a thanks¬ 
giving feast to Him who raised their brother from the 
dead, and brought out the very valuable ointment” (page 
132). 

A short distance from Gethsemane, in the bed of Kid- 
ron, north of the road, is the 


Tomb of the Virgin 

A handsome flight of forty-seven steps leads to the 
church, which according to some traditions was erected 
by St. Helena. The whole place, which belongs now 
to the Greeks, is full of legends, and many sacred spots 
once here have been transferred elsewhere, and vice 
versa. Here are the tombs of Joachim and Anna, the 
parents of the Virgin (page 78), the Tomb of Joseph, the 
husband of the Virgin, the Tomb of Mary, and the Grotto 
of the Agony (page 89). Here, too, are praying places, 
or altars, for Greeks, Armenians, Abyssinians and Mos¬ 
lems. The guide said that the small chapel at the end of 


TOMB OF THE VIRGIN. 


91 


the Grotto contained the empty tomb of the Virgin. Near 
this tomb are twenty-six oil lamps of pure silver, and six 
candles burn over the top of it. It is of marble, and from 
the center rises a little chimney to carry away the smoke 
from the lamps and candles. Outside are about a hun¬ 
dred oil lamps, some of which belong to the Greeks and 
some to the Armenians. There is a very old clock to 
be seen, the pendulum of which is brilliantly set with 
jewels. A flight of steps leads down inside the door to 
the church. 

The Greeks claim that this is the oldest Christian 
church in the world. They perform a service here every 
morning from 7 to 8.30 a. m., and it is open all day on 
Festivals. At other times visitors should knock at the 
little iron door on the south side of the church. The 
arch and pillars of this entrance date from the twelfth 
century. From the Kidron we ascend the hill to St. 
Stephen’s Gate, passing the traditional spot where St. 
Stephen was stoned. Recent explorations tend to prove 
that the real site of St. Stephen’s death was outside the 
Damascus Gate. 

The view from St. Stephen’s Gate is remarkable. 
Across the narrow valley rises the Mount of Olives. The 
top is not level, but is notched with three summits, the 
middle one of which is the highest, on which stands the 
Chapel of the Ascension. Three paths, deeply worn, lead 
over the Mount (see page 82). The enclosure of Geth- 
semane, at the foot of the Mount, is well seen from here 
(page 88). On our left, under the wall, is a large reser¬ 
voir, the Hamman Sitti Mayam, or Bath of Our Lady, 
where people come to draw water and to bathe. On the 
right is the Mohammedan Cemetery, covering a great 
part of the eastern slope of Moriah. 

Continuing past the northeast corner of the city walls 
and striking off to the north, northwest, a journey of 
about half an hour brings us to the 


Tombs of the Kings (or Helena) 

Three classes of excavated tombs are found in Pales¬ 
tine : 

1. Those consisting of deep loculi cut in the face of soft 
limestone, and closed up by rough stone slabs. 

2. Those formed into square or oblong chambers cut 
in the rock. Deep loculi are ranged along the sides, 
“their mouths, closed by neatly dressed stone slabs, fit¬ 
ting closely into reveals made to receive them. The en¬ 
trance to the chamber is by a low square opening, fitted 
with a slab in the same manner, or with a stone door, 
turning on a socket hinge, and secured by bolts on the 
inside. In this kind of tomb there is usually a bench, 
running in front of the loculi, and elevated from a foot 
and a half to three feet above the floor of the excava¬ 
tion.” There are tombs on Mount Ebal with benches 
without loculi, the bench being the resting-place for the 
corpse. 

3. Those in which one entrance leads into a number of 
chambers. The Tombs of the Judges (page 93), the 
Tombs of the Prophets (page 80), and the Tombs of the 
Kings are all of this class. 

“The Tombs of the Kings-are the most interesting of 
all these remains. They lie to the north of Jerusalem, 
about half a mile beyond the Damascus Gate. * * * 

On the left side, at the end of the portico, * * * there 
is a very low door, which one must stoop to enter, and by 
it is a large stone, which may be rolled so as to close 


TOMBS OF THE JUDGES. 


93 


the opening. It reminded me of a large mill-stone and 
would certainly require a good deal of strength to move it 
along the groove cut for its reception. Having entered 
within the low door, I found myself in a spacious 
chamber forming a square, whence passages led into 
other square chambers, round which were numerous deep 
loculi, with inner and very small chambers beyond them, 
or at their side. Turning out of the large principal ante¬ 
chamber to the west, and passing through a second cham¬ 
ber, I ascended a flight of steps which led to a higher 
chamber on the north. There lies the broken lid of a 
sarcophagus (a limestone coffin) and a sarcophagus taken 
from this chamber is now preserved in the Louvre at 
Paris. I noticed, connected with the loculi, ledges to 
support slabs for closing them in, after the dead should 
be deposited there. * * * The architecture points to 

the Roman times, and it seems pretty clear that the cata¬ 
combs bearing the name of the kings, never could have 
been prepared for the ancient princes of Judah. Not 
here are we to look for the Tomb of David and his de¬ 
scendants. Mr. Fergusson considers that they belong 
to the time of Herod”—(Dr. Stoughton). 

The opinion is now very generally entertained that this is 
the Tomb of Queen Helena of Adiabene, a convert to Juda¬ 
ism, 48 A. D., and who, according to Josephus, was buried 
here. 

About a quarter of an hour to the northwest are the 
so-called Tombs of the Judges, which have in front an 
architectural fagade with an ornamental pediment, and 
in the angular space beneath is a pedimented doorway. 
Through this we enter into spacious catacombs, with 
deep loculi ranged along the sides in three stories; the 
upper stories with ledges in front to facilitate the intro¬ 
duction of bodies into the narrow cells, and to support 


94 


JERUSALEM. 


the stones which close up the cells. This arrangement 
may be regarded as characteristically a Jewish one. 

We will continue, however, and take this middle road 
which leads direct to the Damascus Gate. 

Near the Damascus Gate is the Grotto of Jeremiah, 
where a tradition, dating from the fourteenth century, 
says the Prophet wrote the Book of Lamentations, and 
was subsequently buried. The rocky tombs, cisterns 
and other excavations are extremely interesting. The 
place belongs to the Moslems, and the traveler need not 
hesitate to drive a hard bargain with the custodian (or 
guardian), who sometimes demands absurdly high fees 
for admission. 

Opposite the Grotto of Jeremiah, and close to the 
Damascus Gate are the 


Subterranean Quarries 

The entrance is through a hole, only large enough to 
creep through. Then a vast succession of mighty aisles 
and mammoth chambers are reached, where we walked 
through cavern after cavern, and aisle after aisle, till we 
seemed to have gone the whole length and breadth of the 
city. The exploration should not be attempted without 
a guide, or a reliable compass, and a large ball of twine to 
be used and fastened as a clue. It is not yet known how 
far these quarries extend. That they are of very ancient 
date is certain; and there is great probability that they 
yielded the stones used in the building of the Temple; 
for “the house when it was in building was built of stone 
made ready before it was brought thither, so that there 


SUBTERRANEAN QUARRIES. 95 

was neither hammer nor axe, nor any tool of iron heard 
in the house while it was building” (1 Kings 6.7). 

Many a poetical passage has been written by travelers 
who have explored this underground Jerusalem, discov¬ 
ered in 1852 by Dr. Barclay. 

The author of “On Holy Ground,” says: “There was a 
strange feeling of awe in walking through these subter¬ 
ranean caverns, for there in the rock we could make out 
the marks of chiselings just as they were left centuries 
and centuries ago. There was the hole where once a 
spring of water trickled, and at which the weary work¬ 
men slaked their thirst; there were the niches for the 
lamps of the quarrymen, and there were huge blocks 
partially cut from the rocks, and pillars partially shaped 
and left unfinished. And for ages and ages the darkness 
and silence have dwelt together in these dreary caverns, 
while overhead, in the city, generations have come and 
gone; its streets have been deluged with blood, and its 
glories have been leveled with the dust. And here silence 
and darkness dwelt when the cry of ‘Crucify Him, cru¬ 
cify Him!’ rang through the busy streets above, and a 
shudder ran through these gloomy regions when the cry 
went forth, Tt is finished!’ and a great earthquake shook 
the solid earth, while darkness enfolded the land.” 

From the Damascus Gate, the finest in Jerusalem, we 
continued round the walls to the Jaffa Gate, and by this 
route made a complete circuit of the city. 

North of the Jaffa Gate—the busiest in Jerusalem—on 
the road to Jaffa (page 18), are the Russian Buildings, 
very ugly, but doubtless very useful, including a cap¬ 
ital hospital, schools, cathedral, accommodation for a 
thousand pilgrims, etc. There is a fine view from the 
church, and on the west side near the door is an immense 
column, perhaps intended for the Temple, and broken 
in the endeavor to raise it. 


96 


JERUSALEM. 


In this neighborhood are two very interesting and de¬ 
serving philanthropic institutions, the Talitha-Kumi 
(“which is, being interpreted, Damsel, I say unto thee, 
arise,” Mark 5.41) ; an orphanage for girls founded by 
the deservedly popular Rheinish-Westphalian deacon¬ 
esses; Schneller’s Orphanage for Boys, where over sev¬ 
enty boys are well educated and taught some useful 
branch of industry. 

One of the deaconesses, who several years ago came 
from the convent at Kaiserwerth, Rheinland (which is 
the old Homeland of the writer), took my beloved wife 
and me through the building, and I must state that all 
the rooms and everything we saw were very clean in¬ 
deed, and in proper and healthy condition. The orphans 
looked very bright and cheerful and the kindness and 
courtesy of this deaconess are appreciated by all. 


From Jerusalem to Bethlehem 

(This is a journey of l l / 2 hours’ riding, or one hour in 
a carriage. The road is in very good order.) 

Leaving Jerusalem by the Jaffa Gate, we descend into 
the Valley of Gihon, and cross it at the upper end of the 
lower pool; then ascend the hill on the southwest side 
to the “Valley of the Giants,” leaving on the left the tra¬ 
ditional tree on which Judas hanged himself, and the 
country house of Caiaphas the High Priest. This plain 
has been called the Valley of Rephaim, the boundary¬ 
line between Judah and Benjamin (Joshua 20.8). It was 
here that the Philistines were defeated by David. Before 
reaching the top of the long rise, we were shown a well, 
which is called the Well of the Magi, tradition stating 
that the Wise Men, after leaving the presence of Herod, 


JERUSALEM TO BETHLEHEM. 


97 


knew not whither to go, and being weary with their 
journey, stooped to draw water, when they saw the star 
reflected in the well, and under its guidance they fol¬ 
lowed till it stood over where the holy child was. Our 
guide pointed out a great rock by the roadside where 
Elijah, wearied in his flight from Jezebel, lay down to 
rest. It seemed a hard bed for a tired man, but we re¬ 
membered that in olden times rocks and caves were se¬ 
lected for sleeping-places, and stones often served for 
pillows. At this point Jerusalem is visible behind, and 
Bethlehem in front. 

Descending the hill, in about twenty minutes from 
Mar Elyas, the Tomb of Rachel is reached. It is a small 
modern building with a dome. There can be no doubt 
whatever that this site, which is revered by Christians 
and Moslems, as well as by the Jews, is the scene of the 
touching story of Rachel’s death. 

She had journeyed from Bethel to this place, on the 
way to Bethlehem. “And there was but a little way to 
come to Ephrath” (Bethlehem) ; not more than a mile, 
and within full sight of the spot. Here she was deliv¬ 
ered of her son. “And it came to pass, as her soul was 
in departing (for she died), that she called his name 
Ben-oni (i. e., son of my sorrow.) : but his father called 
him Benjamin” (i. e., son of my right hand.) ; “And 
Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Ephrath, 
which is Bethlehem. And Jacob set a pillar upon her 
grave: that is the pillar of Rachel’s grave unto this day” 
(Genesis 35.16-20). The reader will remember that in 
wooing her, seven long years “seemed to Jacob but a few 
days, for the love he bore her.” And as the old man, 
long weary years after her death, was himself drawing 
to the grave, he repeats, with tender memory the story 
of his loss. “And as for me, when I came from Padan, 
Rachel died by me in the land of Canaan in the way. 


98 


JERUSALEM TO BETHLEHEM. 


when yet there was but a little way to come unto Eph- 
rath; and I buried her there in the way of Ephrath; the 
same is Bethlehem” (Genesis 48.7). 

About a quarter of a mile to the west of Rachel’s Tomb 
is a village named Beit Jala, the residence of the Latin 
and Greek Patriarchs. It has a population of 3,000, 
mostly Greeks, and all Christians. It is possible that this 
village may be the ancient Zelyah, where Saul was met 
by the messengers of Samuel, saying, “The asses which 
thou went to seek are found, and lo thy father hath left 
the care of the asses, and sorroweth for thee, saying, 
What shall I do for my son” (1 Sam. 9.10). 

The views of Bethlehem, as the ancient city is ap¬ 
proached, are extremely picturesque, and will doubtless 
suggest many pictures to the mind’s eye in connection 
with the stories of Ruth, David, and others. Here is a 
specimen of the pictures:— 

“There are so many events connected with Bethlehem 
that it is hard to single out cases; but one cannot look 
upon that group of women in their white robes, standing 
over there on a terrace just under the town (as it ap¬ 
pears from our view, gesticulating to one another in 
earnest conversation), without thinking of the group 
that once surrounded Naomi, the sorrow-stricken widow, 
returning to her native town, and hearing the people 
say, as they looked at her pale, haggard face, ‘Is this 
Naomi?’ 

“Nor can we look upon the corn-fields, with their green 
blades waving on the morning air, without thinking of 
the time of harvest, when Ruth gleaned in the field after 
the reapers, and Boaz saw her and loved her for her 
love, so that by and by she became his wife, and when a 
child was born to her in process of time, she became the 
grandmother of David the King, and the ancestress of 
Christ. It is a charming story, and I know not that I 


APPROACHING BETHLEHEM. 


99 


ever read a romance with a tithe of the interest that 
I read the story of Ruth that morning on the way to 
Bethlehem. 

“But see! over there, coming down the steep path¬ 
way on one side of the town, is a shepherd leading forth 
his sheep. He goeth before them, and the sheep follow 
him. He is leading them out to green pastures; they 
know him, and follow whithersoever he leadeth; the fore¬ 
most of them are not more than a foot behind the shep¬ 
herd’s heels. It was upon one of these hills that David, 
the youth, ‘ruddy, and withal of a beautiful countenance, 
and goodly to look to,’ kept his father’s sheep. It was 
in these glens and valleys that he rang out those glorious 
songs which have echoed through the world, and been 
the key-notes to new melodies in every believer’s heart. 
It was here that the rocks and the hills, the sun¬ 
shine and the shadow, the poetry and the music of the 
little world around him, became God’s instruments to 
create that mighty world within him whose treasures 
have enriched all ages. It was from those terraces yon¬ 
der that he would see the starry heavens, declaring the 
glory of God, and cry out in humility and faith, ‘What 
is man that Thou art mindful of him?’ Truly, Bethle¬ 
hem is still the ‘City of David’ (Luke 2.4); and every 
hill, and valley, and field recalls some story of his life. 
Now we see him coming from that wild glen, bearing 
the trophies of his battles with the lion and the bear; 
or we see him hurrying, with eager heart and wondering 
countenance, to meet the prophet who had sent for him 
from the fields, and who anointed him in the midst of 
his brethren. Again, we watch him coming down that 
steep hill with the ass laden by his father, on his way 
to Saul, and we note the tender care with which he holds 
the harp, that friend of his solitude and minister of his 


100 


BETHLEHEM. 


joy—that instrument which shall be in his hand as 
powerful over the giant Saul as the sling and the stone 
(his boyhood’s toys) shall be over the giant Goliath.” 


Bethlehem (Beit-Lahm) 

Bethlehem (House of Bread), or Beit-Lahm, is sit¬ 
uated six miles from Jerusalem, on an elongated hill, 
well cultivated in terraces round the sides, and with fer¬ 
tile corn fields in the valley below. On the terraces, 
vines and fig trees are in abundance. The wine of Beth¬ 
lehem has considerable local celebrity, but does not ap¬ 
pear to be appreciated by some travelers. 

The town consists of about five hundred houses, mostly 
substantial, and the fortress-like buildings of the 
Church of the Nativity and the three adjoining convents. 
The streets are narrow, steep, and slippery. Bethlehem 
forms a pleasing picture, the square solid-built houses, 
with a good sprinkling of cupolas rising above each other 
like the gardens and groves just below them. 

The population is about 8,000. The inhabitants of 
Bethlehem have always been celebrated for their ruddy 
beauty, and also for their fierce turbulence, inclined, like 
David, to be “men of war from their youth,” and, it is 
said, always conspicuous in the frequent religious dis¬ 
turbances at Jerusalem. Bethlehem is the most Chris¬ 
tian town in Palestine; the Moslem Quarter was de¬ 
stroyed by Ibrahim Pasha after a rebellion in 1834. 

The inhabitants are largely employed in the manufac¬ 
ture and sale of bracelets, beads, rosaries, crucifixes, 
cigar-holders, and various other small articles, chiefly 
made of olive and Dead Sea wood and mother-of-pearl. 



BETHLEHEM. 

















































' 































: ■ 











































Bible Associations 

An event of importance in connection with Bethlehem 
is the anointing of David by Samuel to be King of Israel 
(1 Sam. 16.13). In the adjacent hill country, the shep¬ 
herd boy, the great-grandson of Ruth, had spent his 
youth in tending sheep; there he had encountered wild 
beasts (1 Sam. 17.37), and composed his earliest Psalms. 
From Bethlehem he was sent for by Saul, to “minister 
to a mind diseased” with his melodious harpings (1 Sam. 
16.19). Returning from the courts of Saul to his native 
place (1 Sam. 17), he thence goes forth to see his broth¬ 
ers with the army, and slays the giant champion of 
Philistia, as recorded in the same chapter. 

There were other members of the family of Jesse who 
attained to celebrity, and displayed the fighting charac¬ 
ter of the Bethlehemite in all their actions. These were 
Joab, Abishai, and Asahel, the sons of David’s sister 
Zeruiah, and Amasa, the son of David’s other sister Abi¬ 
gail (1 Chron. 2.16). When Asahel, “light of foot as a 
wild roe” (2 Sam. 2.18) outstripped his companions in 
the pursuit of Abner, and met his death at the hands of 
that chieftain, the servants of David “buried him in the 
sepulchre of his father, which was in Bethlehem” (2 Sam. 
2.32). Well might the little town take as one of its titles 
the appellation of “the City of David” (Luke 2.4), for 
Bethlehem and its neighborhood was the scene of his 
earliest associations and exploits and spiritual exercises; 
and the home of his nearest kindred. 


101 


102 


BETHLEHEM. 


From the able arguments of Hepworth Dixon there 
seems good reason to believe that through all these long 
years of peace and war, of captivity and restoration, 
there was a continuity of possession on the part of the 
family of David, of their ancestral lands on the hill of 
Bethlehem. And more, there seems no reason to doubt 
that on the patrimony of Boaz, and Jesse, and Chimham, 
there had been erected, by one of the heads of the fam¬ 
ily, in accordance with eastern custom, a caravanserai 
or inn, representative of the primitive hospitality of ear¬ 
lier days; so that when “J ose pli went up from Galilee, 
out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city 
of David, which is called Bethlehem (because he was 
of the house and lineage of David ), to be taxed with 
Mary his espoused wife” (Luke 2.4,5), he was, in com¬ 
ing to the inn, not only literally complying with the 
Roman edict, that every one should go to his own city, 
but was probably going to his own house. 

And now there came to pass the wondrous events re¬ 
corded in detail by the evangelists Matthew and Luke, 
in the second chapters of their respective gospels, and 
succinctly summed up by St. John in the statement that, 
“The Word was made flesh and dwelt amongst us.” It 
is these events which make Bethlehem a household word 
wherever Christianity is professed, and cause the 
thoughts of millions to be turned towards this Judaean 
village, as year by year Christmas-tide comes round. 
“And thou, Bethlehem-Ephratah, though thou be little 
among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall He 
come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose 
goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting” 
(Micah 5.2). 

It is in commemoration of the great event thus fore¬ 
told by Micah, years before its occurrence, and the kin¬ 
dred associations linked with that event, that the prin- 


BETHLEHEM. 


103 


cipal object of attraction in Bethlehem, about to be de¬ 
scribed, was erected. 


The Church of the Nativity 

The huge fortress-like pile of buildings at the eastern 
extremity of the village of Bethlehem comprises the 
Church of the Nativity, and the three contiguous con¬ 
vents belonging respectively to the Catholic, Greek, and 
Armenian churches. 

The Nave of the Church, which is the common prop¬ 
erty of all Christians, and wears a very desolate and 
neglected aspect, is the “oldest monument of Christian 
architecture in the world.” It is the sole remaining por¬ 
tion of the grand Basilica erected here by the Empress 
Helena, the mother of Constantine, in 327 A. D. In this 
edifice, once brilliant with gold and colored marbles, 
Baldwin was crowned, and the last repairs were executed 
by Edward IV. of England. 

The Church is still a fine building. It contains five 
rows of about 40 marble columns, of Corinthian order, 
each of a single stone (Pressense), some of which are 
said to have once formed a part of the Temple at Jeru¬ 
salem. The mosaics on the walls, considered to date 
from the original construction of the edifice, are mostly 
faded, but here and there are in good condition. The 
roof is formed of beams of rough cedar from Lebanon. 

The Chapel or Grotto of the Nativity is a cave in the 
rock, over and around which the Church and Convent 
buildings are reared, and for the sake of which they exist. 
It is twenty feet below the floor of the church, and is 
approached by two spiral staircases. 


104 


BETHLEHEM. 


Descending by either of these staircases, we enter a 
vault 33 feet by 11 feet, encased with Italian marble, and 
decorated with thirty gold and silver lamps, which throw 
a dim soft light on the place below, and with figures of 
saints, decorated with embroidery and various other 
ornaments. 

On one side of the Grotto is a recess where a silver 
star on the pavement indicates the spot where our Sa¬ 
viour was born. Around it is the inscription 


“Hie De Virgine Maria Jesus Christus Natus est.” 
(“Here was born Jesus Christ of the Virgin Mary.’’) 


Above this spot sixteen silver lamps are perpetually 
burning (six belong to the Greeks, and five each to the 
Catholics and Armenians). Close by, there is a plain 
altar, which each of the three sects use on their special 
festivals, and decorate according to their own ideas. 

The other recess, the Chapel of the Manger, is said to 
be the place of the discovery of the wooden manger or 
prsesepium (shown now at the church of St. Maria Mag- 
giore at Rome). 

The Altar of the Magi, the property of the Catholics, is 
said to mark the spot where the Wise Men of the East 
presented their gifts. 

In proximity to the Grotto of the Nativity, various 
chapels, tombs, pictures, etc., are shown. 

The Chapel of St. Joseph is described as the spot to 
which Joseph retired at the moment of the Nativity, and 
where the angel appeared, commanding the Flight into 
Egypt. 


CHURCH OF THE NATIVITY. 


105 


The Altar of the Innocents is overlooked by a picture 
of no merit. Thousands of victims of Herod’s cruel mas¬ 
sacre are alleged to be buried here. 

Whatever may be thought of some of the above- 
named altars, it seems extremely probable that the Grotto 
of the Nativity may indeed be the actual place of our 
Lord’s birth. That a cave, or caves, in the hillside ad¬ 
jacent to the inn, or small hotel, were utilized as stables 
for the cattle, especially when the inn was crowded, and 
that in such a cave the Redeemer was born, is a tradition 
of very high antiquity. It yvas commonly accepted as 
early as the time of Justin Martyr, about a hundred years 
after the facts occurred. 

Of one ardent believer in the Grotto as his Saviour’s 
birthplace, lasting memorials are seen in the Chapel and 
Tomb of St. Jerome. The chapel is the cell where that 
illustrious champion of the church spent the greater part 
of his life. The following eloquent passage, from Dean 
Stanley’s “Sinai and Palestine,” graphically describes those 
long years of vigil and toil: 

“If the traveler follows the windings of that long 
subterranean gallery [as the author has done], he will 
find himself, at its close, in a rough chamber hewn out of 
the rock; here sufficiently clear to need no proof of vin¬ 
dication. In this cell, in all probability, lived and died 
the most illustrious of all the pilgrims attracted to the 
cave of Bethlehem, the only one, of the many hermits 
and monks, from the time of Constantine to the present 
day, sheltered within its rocky sides, whose name has 
traveled beyond the limits of the Holy Land. Here, for 
more than thirty years, beside what he believed to be 
literally the cradle of the Christian faith, Jerome fasted, 
prayed, dreamed, and studied; here he gathered round 
him his devoted followers in the small communities 
which formed the beginnings of conventual life in Pal- 


106 


BETHLEHEM. 


estine; here the fiery spirit which he had brought with 
him from his Dalmatian birthplace, and which had been 
first roused to the religious fervor on the banks of the 
Moselle, vented itself in the flood of treatises, letters, and 
commentaries, which he poured forth from his retire¬ 
ment, to terrify, exasperate, and enlighten the Western 
World; here also was composed the famous translation 
of the Scriptures which is still the ‘Biblia Vulgata’ (or 
Bible version) of the Latin Church; and here took place 
that pathetic scene, his last communion and death—at 
which all the world has been permitted to be present in 
the wonderful picture of Domenichino, which has repre¬ 
sented in colors never to be surpassed, the attenuated 
frame of the weak and sinking flesh,—the resignation and 
devotion of the spirit ready for its immediate departure.” 

I remember Domenichino’s famous painting in the 
Vatican at Rome, called “Last Communion of St. Je¬ 
rome.” 

Before leaving this wonderful group of buildings, com¬ 
prehended under the general title of “The Church of the 
Nativity,” and, after ascending the stairs of the Crypt, 
we visited the Catholic Church of St. Catherine, hand¬ 
somely decorated, and then passed into the Franciscan 
Monastery, with its very pleasant gardens. From the 
roof of the Armenian Monastery is a fine view. 

The Well of Bethlehem, or Davids well, may be vis¬ 
ited on the way from Jerusalem, and before entering the 
town, or it is an easy and pleasant walk of about fifteen 
minutes. It is the traditional spot referred to in 2 Sam. 
23.13-17, and 1 Chron. 11.15-19. When David and his 
men were in the Cave of Adullam, and Bethlehem was 
garrisoned by the Philistines, David expressed the long¬ 
ing desire, “Oh, that one would give me to drink of the 
water of the well of Bethlehem, that is at the gate!” 
Three mighty men heard the wish, broke through the 












SHEPHERDESS 











THE SHEPHERDS’ FIELD. 


107 


Philistine hosts, and brought their lord the cooling 
draught he had longed for. But David would not drink 
that which his followers had risked their lives to bring 
him, and poured it out before the Lord. 

A short distance south of the Church of the Nativity 
is the Milk Grotto, the traditional scene of the seclusion 
of the Virgin Mary and the holy infant Jesus before the 
flight into Egypt. It is alleged that a drop of the Vir¬ 
gin’s milk having fallen upon the floor turned the whole 
cavern white, and that to this day the cavern has the 
curious property of increasing the milk of women who 
visit it in their need. Those who cannot visit it are sup¬ 
posed to derive benefit from eating a kind of biscuit in 
which the dust of the rock is mixed. 

A short distance east of the Milk Grotto is the so- 
called House of Joseph, and beyond this the village of 
Beit Sahur, where the shepherds of Luke 2 are supposed 
to have resided. In about fifteen minutes, the Shepherds' 
Field is reached. A very ancient tradition makes this 
the spot where the shepherds were watching their flocks 
by night, and received “the good tidings of great joy.” 
“And there were in the same country shepherds abiding 
in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And 
lo 1 the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory 
of the Lord shone round about them; and they were 
sore afraid. And the angel said, Fear not; for, behold, 
I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to 
all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of 
David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this 
shall be a sign unto you: Ye shall find the babe wrapped 
in swaddling clothes, laying in a manger. And sud¬ 
denly there was with the angel a multitude of the heav¬ 
enly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the 
highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” 

A wall encloses this field, in which there are some fine 


108 


JERUSALEM TO HEBRON. 


olive trees. The Grotto of the Shepherds is in the field— 
a dark subterranean chapel belonging to the Greeks 
When the eye becomes accustomed to the darkness, it 
will be found that the Grotto is fitted up as a church, 
and contains a few paintings. It is alleged that this is 
the identical spot where the shepherds beheld the vision 
of the angel—a tradition which has no authority and 
dates from the time of the Crusaders. 


From Jerusalem to Hebron 

(By the Pools of Solomon.) 

The road from Jerusalem is the same as that described 
in the previous route as far as Beit Jala (page 98); 
here it leaves Bethlehem on the left and branches off to 
the right, and the distance to the Pools is about one 
hour. The interesting and important excursion by car¬ 
riage from Jerusalem to Bethlehem, the Pools of Solomon 
and Hebron, and back to Jerusalem, can be done in one 
day. 

We started at 7 a. m. and returned at about 6 p. m. 

Pools of Solomon.—There is near the Upper Pool a 
huge building, with castellated walls of uncertain origin 
—though obviously Saracenic. It has been called a cas¬ 
tle, but probably always was, what it now is, a khan (or 
inn). A short distance to the right of the castle is the 
Sealed Fountain of Solomon (Song Sol. 4.12) which, it 
is said, regulated and secured the constant supply of 
water for the Holy City. To visit it, candles had to be 
taken, as it was approached by a flight of twenty steps 
leading into a dark vaulted chamber. In the dry season 
this spring supplies the Pools with water. 


THE POOLS OF SOLOMON. 


109 


The Pools are three enormous cisterns of marble ma 
sonry, and their measurements are: 

“Lower Pool. Length, 582 feet; breadth, east end, 
207 feet, west, 148 feet; depth at east end, 50 feet. (Dr. 
Thomson says that ‘when full it would float the largest 
man-of-war that ever ploughed the ocean.’)” 

“Middle Pool. Distance above Lower Pool, 248 feet; 
length, 423 feet; breadth, at east end, 250 feet; west, 160 
feet; depth at east end, 39 feet. 

“Upper Pool. Distance above Middle Pool, 160 feet; 
length, 380 feet; breadth, east end, 236, west, 229 feet; 
depth at west end, 25 feet.” (Robinson.) 

From the admirable state of preservation these basins 
are in, it is difficult to realize that they are more than a 
century old; it is most probable, however, that they date 
from Solomon’s time, although they were restored by 
Pontius Pilate. Formerly water was supplied to Jeru¬ 
salem from these pools; at the present time water is only 
conveyed as far as Bethlehem, although the course of 
the aqueduct can be traced all the way to the Haram, or 
court of the Temple, a distance of twelve to fourteen 
miles (page 65). 

The name of Solomon’s Pools is taken from a passage 
in Eccles. 2.6, “I made me pools of water to water there¬ 
with the wood that bringeth forth trees.” 

For three hours there is nothing to describe of our 
journey; we crossed valleys and spurs of hills, where 
traces of terraces were visible and passed merchantmen 
with their camel trains. The vegetation attracted our 
attention, especially the hills wooded with small oaks, 
terebinths, and arbutus. 

“At length our course lay over a stony, dangerous road, 
a long lane of slippery slabs; and here our thoughts were 
diverted from camels, and Arabs, and the trifling things 
which even in the Holy Land engage one’s thoughts. 


110 


JERUSALEM TO HEBRON. 


We were on the old road to Hebron—perhaps on the 
oldest road in the world. Along it Abraham passed on 
that journey of faith to sacrifice his son on Moriah; along 
it David led his veterans to conquer the stronghold of the 
Jebusites on Zion; and along it, perhaps, the Saviour was 
borne in His mother’s arms on the way to Egypt. A crowd 
of thoughts rushed through the mind as we looked around 
upon the scenes of fertility and desolation. We needed 
not to have the ruins of convent-walls, or the legends of 
monks and bookmakers, to impress us with the wonders 
of the locality. These hills, and roads, and valleys are 
sacred to the memory of Abraham, the Father of the 
Faithful and the Friend of God. Here, in the bitterness 
of his sorrow, after Sarai was ‘buried out of his sight’ in 
the Cave of Machpelah, no doubt he wandered, and look¬ 
ing up at the bright stars in the cloudless sky, which had 
been typical to him aforetime of the power and goodness 
of God in the days of his prosperity, he looked at again 
through his tearful eyes, and read in them a pledge still 
of the goodness and faithfulness of the Almighty. Here 
Isaac, and Jacob, and David, and Solomon walked, re¬ 
volving in their minds the destiny of that nation which 
might have been at this day the center of universal em¬ 
pire ; but the scattered tribes are spread through the nations 
of the world.” (Hodder.) 


Hebron 

Hebron (Alliance—Friendship) is the oldest town of 
Palestine, and one of the oldest of the world. Its name 
in the first instance was Kirjath-Arba, so named from 
Arba, the father of Anak, the giant (Joshua 20.1-11,15.13, 
14). It was “built seven years before Zoan” (Num. 



HEBRON—CAVE OF MACHPELAH. 






























. 



























HEBRON. 


Ill 


13.22), i. e., Tanis in Egypt, and when Josephus wrote, 
it was 2,300 years old. In the time of Abraham it took 
the name of Mamre, doubtless after Mamre the Amorite, 
the friend and ally of Abraham (Gen. 33.19,35.27). It 
was at that time a walled city, for when Abraham bought 
the field of Machpelah, it “was in the presence of the 
children of Heth, before all that went in at the gate of 
his city” (Gen. 23.10). Damascus was a city at the same 
period (Eliezer of Damascus was Abraham’s servant— 
Gen. 15.2) ; but whether Hebron or Damascus can claim 
seniority is not known. 

It was here that grand old sheikh lived—the father 
of his people, and the friend of God (page 114). From 
this place the lad Joseph went forth to seek his brethren 
in Shechem. And here came back the sons, bringing the 
blood-stained garment. “And Jacob rent his clothes, and 
put sackcloth upon his loins, and mourned for his son 
many days” (Gen. 38.34). 

It has witnessed many fierce struggles, notably when 
“Joshua went up from Eglon, and all Israel with him 
unto Hebron; and they fought against it; and they took 
it and smote it with the edge of the sword, and the king 
thereof and all the cities thereof, and all the souls there¬ 
in; he left none remaining, but destroyed it utterly” 
(Joshua 10.37). Afterwards, in answer to Caleb’s prayer, 
“Joshua blessed him, and gave unto Caleb, the son of 
Jephunneh, Hebron for an inheritance * * * Hebron 
therefore became the inheritance of Caleb unto this 
day * * * because that he wholly followed the Lord God 
of Israel” (Joshua 14.13,14). It was later made a city 
of refuge, unto which the pursued manslayer might flee 
(Joshua 20.7). 

Another set of associations, equally interesting, attach 
to Hebron. It was here that David had his residence 
for seven and a half years, when he reigned over Judah 


112 


HEBRON. 


alone (2 Sam. 2.1). Here Absalom was born; and here 
Abner was treacherously murdered by Joab, who “took 
him aside in the gate to speak with him quietly, and 
smote him there under the fifth rib, that he died * * * 
and they buried Abner in Hebron; and King David him¬ 
self followed the bier. And the king lifted up his voice 
and wept at the grave of Abner, and all the people wept. 
And the king said, Know ye not that there is a prince 
and a great man fallen this day in Israel?” (2 Sam. 
3.27-38). 

Hither came Absalom, under the pretext of perform¬ 
ing a vow, and “he sent spies throughout all the tribes 
of Israel, saying, As soon as ye hear the sound of the 
trumpet, then ye shall say Absalom reigneth in Hebron 
(2 Sam. 15.10). 

The other remaining events of importance are asso¬ 
ciated with places yet pointed out in Hebron, the Cave 
of Machpelah, and the Pools (see below). 

The modern name of Hebron is el-Khalil, the Friend. 
It is situated in the narrow Valley of Eshcol, still 
abounding with vineyards. There are no walls to the 
town, but one or two somewhat superfluous gates. The 
streets are dark and dirty; the houses are for the most 
part substantial, and, being nearly all built of stone, and 
covered with cupolas or small domes, give a curious and 
interesting effect. The population has been variously 
estimated, but it is probable there are about 12,000 in¬ 
habitants, many of whom are occupied in the manufac¬ 
ture of rings, bracelets, and many other kinds of glass 
trinkets. There are no Christians in Hebron, but about 
600 Jews, who still attract attention by their pale faces 
and long ringlets. The Moslems of Hebron are strangely 
superstitious and fanatical, and travelers should always 
be upon their guard, so as not to say or do anything 
which will provoke their animosity. 


CAVE OF MACHPELAH. 


113 


In the valley there are two Pools of very ancient date, 
which still supply the town with water. To one of these 
Pools, probably the southern, a story attaches. Rechab 
and Baanah, sons of Rimmon, thought to do King David 
a service by slaying Ishbosheth, the son of Saul, and 
therefore a rival. They brought the head of Ishbosheth 
to Hebron, expecting an expression of his favor, but 
David said unto them “As the Lord liveth who hath 
redeemed my soul out of all adversity, when one told 
me, saying, Behold, Saul is dead, thinking to have 
brought good tidings, I took hold of him and slew him 
in Ziklag, who thought that I would have given him a 
reward for his tidings; how much more when wicked 
men have slain a righteous person in his own house upon 
his bed? shall I not therefore now require his blood of 
your hand, and take you away from the earth? And 
David commanded his young men, and they slew them 
and cut off their hands and their feet and hanged them up 
over the pool in Hebron” (2 Sam. 4.9-12). 

The chief interest in Hebron centers in the Cave of 
Machpelah. It is no more a cave in the midst of a field, 
but a mosque—a large building of massive stones, 
but not of a pleasing appearance. Unfortunately, we 
could only stand a short way off from the entrance; we 
dared not enter, the place being guarded with most jeal¬ 
ous care by the Moslems. We walked by the side of 
the Haram, and ascended to the top of the hill and the 
dragoman pointed out some parts of the building, but 
that was all. 

However, little as there may be in Hebron to see, there 
is much for the mind’s eye to dwell upon, and no one can 
stand beside this spot—sacred alike to Jew, Christian, 
and Mohammedan—without recalling some of the most 
touching of Old Testament scenes. 

Sarah, the beloved wife of Abraham, “died in Kirjath- 


114 


HEBRON. 


Arba, the same is Hebron, in the land of Canaan; and 
Abraham came to mourn for Sarah, and to weep for her. 
And Abraham stood up from before his dead, and spake 
unto the sons of Heth, saying, I am a stranger and a 
sojourner with you; give me a possession of a burying 
place with you, that I may bury my dead out of my 
sight.” The contract with the sons of Heth was made in 
the gate of the city, and in the presence of all the people; 
and the details of the contract were such as are entered 
upon to this very day, as shown in “The Land and the 
Book.” 

The field, the cave, the trees in the field, all were 
“made sure unto Abraham for a possession.” And after 
this “Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the 
field of Machpelah” (Gen. 23). 

Mighty prince as Abraham was, “very rich in silver 
and in gold” founder of that great nation, which was to 
possess the land forever, this was the only spot in all 
Palestine that was his own, and for this he weighed out 
the silver unto Ephron. God “gave him none inheritance 
in it, no not so much as to set his foot on: yet He promised 
that He would give it to him for a possession, and to his 
seed after him, when as yet he had no child” (Acts 7.5). 

In process of time “Abraham gave up the ghost, and 
died in a good old age, an old man, and full of years, and 
was gathered to his people; and his sons Isaac and Ish- 
mael,” the Jew and the Arab “buried him in the cave of 
Machpelah” (Gen. 25.8,9). 

As Jacob lay a-dying, his thoughts turned to this quiet 
resting-place, and he gave a summary of its sacredness, 
when he charged his sons with so much explicitness 
saying, “I am to be gathered unto my people: bury me 
with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron 
the Hittite, in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, 
which is before Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which 


CAVE OF MACHPELAH. 


115 


Abraham bought with the field of Ephron the Hittite 
for a possession of a burying-place. There they buried 
Abraham and Sarah his wife; there they buried Isaac 
and Rebekah his wife; and there I buried Leah” (Gen. 
49.31). Probably there was never a grander funeral than 
that of Jacob, when Joseph, “with all the servants of 
Pharaoh, the elders of his house, and all the elders of the 
land of Egypt, and all the house of Joseph, and his 
brethren, and his father’s house; and chariots and horse¬ 
men” carried the embalmed body from Egypt into the 
land of Canaan, to the cave of Machpelah. 

Referring to the Cave of Machpelah, Norman Mac¬ 
Leod says: 

“This is the only spot on earth which attracts to it all 
who possess the one creed, T believe in God.’ The Holy 
Sepulchre in Jerusalem separates Moslem, Jew, and 
Christian; here they assemble together. The Moslem 
guards this place as dear and holy. The Jew from every 
land draws near to it with reverence and love, and his 
kisses have left an impress on its stones. Christians, of 
every kindred, and tongue, and creed, visit the spot with 
a reverence equally affectionate. And who lies here? a 
great king or conqueror? a man famous for his genius 
or his learning? No; but an old shepherd, who pitched 
his tent over 4,000 years ago among these hills, a stranger 
and a pilgrim in the land, and who was known only as 
El-Khalil —‘the Friend.’ By that blessed name Abram 
was known while he lived; by that name he is remem¬ 
bered where he lies buried; and by that name the city is 
called after him.” 


Oak of Mamre or “Abraham’s 
Oak” 

Next in interest to the Cave of Machpelah, is the Oak 
of Mamre, a journey of about half an hour. The road is 
somewhat difficult and slippery, being paved; vineyards 
abound. A gateway on the right is passed, and the grand 
old terebinth tree comes in view. The tree is very old. 
Tradition affirms that Abraham’s Oak was standing here 
in the time of our Lord. “This tree,” said a native of 
Jerusalem, “is over 6,000 years old.” It is nearly 33 feet 
in girth, it has three magnificent branches which divide 
at about 20 feet from the ground. 

I was surprised to see the tree enclosed by a stone 
wall, which is 8 feet high, and entered by a gate kept 
under lock and key. 

[During the last few years more care has been taken 
of the sacred places; the Garden of Gethsemane, Elisha’s 
Spring, etc., were, since my first trip with the Cook’s 
party in 1898, more restored and greater care is being 
taken to preserve them.] 

If this is the site of the dwelling-place of the great 
patriarch, it is indeed a sacred spot for here “the Lord 
appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre: and he sat in 
the tent door in the heat of the day; and he lift up his 
eyes and looked, and lo, three men stood by him: and when 
he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent-door, and 
bowed himself toward the ground.” Then he bade Sarah 


116 



OAK OF MAMRE, OR ABRAHAM’S OAK. 



























































JERUSALEM TO JERICHO. 


117 


make ready the cakes upon the hearth, while he ran to the 
herd and fetched “a calf tender and good/’ and when the 
meal was spread Abraham received the announcement that 
he should have a son. It was as they rose up from this 
place that the Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham 
that thing which I do?” and then told him of the im¬ 
pending doom of Sodom and Gomorrah, which, at his 
intercession, the Lord said He would spare for the sake 
of ten righteous men (Gen. 18). 

In about twenty minutes from here the road to Jeru¬ 
salem is gained, and the return journey to Solomon’s 
Pools is identical with that already described (page 108). 


From Jerusalem to Jericho 

My first trip, above mentioned, on a “Thos. Cook & 
Son Tour” was made on horseback, which was pleasant, 
but on the last trip we went by carriage. This carriage 
ride was the roughest ride of my life on that day from 
Jerusalem to Jericho, and as such it will long remain in 
my memory. The distance is about thirty miles; and 
the journey is now often made in a carriage. During 
my stay in Jerusalem I saw that the greater number of 
travelers chose this mode, although they sometimes 
had to walk distances, according to the hills they crossed, 
which were too steep for horses. 

About seven miles from Jerusalem we reached a khan, 
where the water is excellent, and where travelers usually 
halt for their mid-day meal. There are now but few 
traces of the old khan, which once stood here, or of the 
arch covering the cistern, into which the water flows 
from the spring. It has been called the Apostles’ Spring, 
from the legend that here the Apostles tarried on their 


118 


JERUSALEM TO JERICHO. 


journeyings; and it is also supposed Christ came often 
here to instruct His Apostles, and they drank of its water, 
hence the name Apostles’ Spring. There is little doubt 
that this fountain of ’Ain-el-Haud, or ’Ain-Chot, is iden¬ 
tical with En-Shemesh (Spring of the Sun), a fountain 
on the boundary between Judah and Benjamin (Joshua 
15.7,18.17). 

After riding about six miles further, we came to an 
old ruined khan. We halted, and went in this inn for 
refreshments and to rest from the jolting, but very lit¬ 
tle accommodation can be obtained here. This is the 
traditional scene of the parable of the Good Samaritan, 
who rescued the certain man going “down from Jeru¬ 
salem to Jericho, and fell among thieves” (St. Luke 
10.34). 

About three hours from this khan we reached the 
Dead Sea. Native Bedouin guides and armed dragomen 
went with us for our protection, although there was no 
cause for alarm. 


The Dead Sea 

is called in the Scripture the Sea of the Plain (Deut. 
4.49). The Greeks named it “Dead Sea” by which name 
it is now generally known, although the Arabs call it 
Bahr-Lut (the Sea of Lot). According to the most re¬ 
liable measurements, the sea is 46 English miles in its 
greatest length, and nine and a half in the greatest 
width. Its mean depth is 1,080 feet; in the south bay 
the depth does not exceed eleven feet. 

Lying, as it does, 1,300 feet below the level of the 
Mediterranean, it is the most depressed sheet of water 



GOOD SAMARITAN INN 










, 

















• 







• 








THE DEAD SEA. 


119 


in the world, although it contains no living thing of 
any kind. 

About ten miles down the Dead Sea, south of Pizgah 
we noticed a round topped Tell, the site on which the 
Castle of Machserus once stood, where John the Baptist 
was beheaded. “And he sent and beheaded John in the 
prison” (Matt. 14.10). We also saw the deep valley a 
little north of Machserus, called Wady Z’urka Ma’in 
(Callirhoe), in which are the warm baths that Herod 
the Great resorted to in the time of his last illness. On 
the east side are the mountains of Moab and Ammon 
over which the Israelites passed. The Mount Nebo, 
which is in the land of Moab, is the highest point east 
in a line with the north end of the sea where Moses saw 
the Land of Promise, and was buried in the land of 
Moab. I believe that it was Moses’ privilege to take a 
view from Mount Nebo over the Promised Land, and I 
saw from my view, that from this high mount he must 
have seen nearly the whole land. 

Moses was a good man and a good shepherd. He 
remained about forty years with the high priest Jethro, 
who had many flocks of sheep and many shepherds. 
Moses was the chieftain and herdsman of the chosen 
flock, and he married the priest’s daughter Zipporah— 
the leader of the shepherdesses. He died in a good old 
age; he was 120 years old. 

The Scripture account of the death of Moses is as 
follows: 

“So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the 
land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord. And 
He buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, over 
against Beth-peor, but no man knoweth of his sepulchre 
unto this day” (Deut. 34.5,6). 

“The land of Moab was the native country of Ruth” 
(Ruth 1.16-17). “And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave 


120 


THE DEAD SEA. 


thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither 
thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will 
lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my 
God: Where thou diest, will I die.” 

History of the Dead Sea.—It was here that Lot chose 
for himself a home upon its borders (Gen. 13.12). Abra¬ 
ham dwelt in the land of Canaan and Lot dwelled in 
the cities of the plain and pitched his tent towards 
Sodom. The five cities of the plain: Sodom, Gomorrah, 
Admah, Zebolim and Zoar, were situated on the plain 
and shores of the sea. Gen. 14.1 to 12 gives the account 
of the battle of the four kings against five that took 
place, “in the vale of Siddim, which is the Salt Sea. 
* * * And the vale of Siddim was full of slime pits; 

and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, and fell there”; 
and Lot was taken prisoner. Here were those cities of 
the plain which were so full of wickedness that “the 
Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone 
and fire from the Lord out of heaven; and He overthrew 
those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the 
cities, and that which grew upon the ground” (Gen. 
19.24,25). Here Lot’s wife, looking back, became a 
pillar of salt (Gen. 19.26). In Num. 34.2,12, the sea is 
made one of the borders of the land, and the eastern 
boundary of Judah (Joshua 15.1-5). 

At the Dead Sea, there is a peculiar atmosphere which 
makes one feel more than he can see. Few will care 
to linger on the edge of the sea, as the heat is intense, 
and one ceases to wonder that the six millions of tons 
of water, which it is calculated fall daily into the sea, 
need any other outlet than that which is caused by 
evaporation. 

From the Dead Sea to the Jordan, or rather the Pil¬ 
grims’ Bathing Place, is about one hour’s journey. For 
some distance from the shore, the mounds and hillocks 


THE JORDAN. 


121 


are white with salt. The heat is overpowering, but the 
sight of the green line of foliage edging the river, and 
the large trees in the distance by the Bathing Place, urge 
the traveler forward, and if he has been bathing in the 
Dead Sea, there will be a longing desire to plunge into 
the pure, fresh streams of Jordan. 


The River Jordan 

The Jordan forms the Waters of Merom and flows 
into the Lake of Galilee, and it falls into the Dead Sea. 
It takes its rise in the fork of the two ranges of Anti- 
Libanus, and flows through that part of Palestine which 
extends from the southern extremity of Coele-Syria to 
the Dead Sea. It crosses the rich plain of Huleh, lying 
between the last slopes of Anti-Libanus and the moun¬ 
tains of Galilee, and stops in the beautiful plateau of 
Bascan. Here it forms the Waters of Merom (Lake 
Huleh), from whence, increased in size and force, owing 
to the depression of the valley, it flows into the Lake 
of Galilee. Emerging from this lake, it plunges in 
twenty-seven rapids down a fall of 1,000 feet through 
what is the lowest and final stage of its course. 

“The only known instance of a greater fall is the 
Sacramento River in California.” (Stanley.) Finally, 
after being enriched by the waters of Jabbok, made illus¬ 
trious by Jacob's mysterious conflict, it falls into the 
Dead Sea, from whence it does not emerge again. 

The length of the river, in a straight line from its 
source to the Dead Sea, is not more than 120 miles; its 
course, however, is so remarkable that between the Lake 
of Galilee and the Dead Sea, 60 miles of actual length 


122 


THE JORDAN. 


is increased to 200 by its corkscrew windings. The river 
varies in width from 80 to 160 feet, and in depth from 
five to twelve feet. 

Every stage of the river is sacred with Historical As¬ 
sociations. “Lot lifted up his eyes and beheld all the 
plain of Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere,” 
and was “even as the garden of the Lord” (Gen. 13.10). 
After the forty years’ wandering, the Israelites “crossed 
over it on dry ground, until all the people were passed 
clean over.” The passage occurred in the time of har¬ 
vest, i. e., the beginning of April, when the waters were 
at their highest, from the early rains, and melting 
snow, “for Jordan overfloweth all his banks all the time 
of harvest.” “And the waters which came down from 
above stood and rose up upon an heap very far from 
the city of Adam, that is beside Zaretan: and those that 
came down toward the sea of the plain, even the salt 
sea, failed, and were cut off: and the people passed over 
right against Jericho” (Joshua 3.14,17). Jacob, Gideon, 
Abner, David, Absalom, and many others, crossed this 
river, and here came down those two holy men, one 
of whom was soon to pass into the other world. “And 
Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and 
smote the waters, so that they two went over on dry 
ground” (2 Kings 2.8). Elisha, as he returned from 
parting with his friend, taking the mantle which had 
fallen from his illustrious predecessor, smote the waters, 
so that they parted hither and thither, and he too passed 
over on dry ground. In the waters of Jordan, Naaman 
was cured of his leprosy. “And his flesh came again, 
like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean” 
(2 Kings 5). 

These incidents of the Old Testament pale before the 
memories of the New. Here rang out the “voice of one 
crying in the wilderness. Repent ye: for the kingdom 


THE JORDAN. 


123 


of heaven is at hand.” It has often been suggested that 
the place of baptism was in the very place where Elijah, 
his great forerunner, passed over; where he finished his 
course, the Baptist in the spirit and power of Elias com¬ 
menced his. “Then went out to him Jerusalem, and 
all Judsea, and all the region round about Jordan; and 
were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins” 
(Matt. 3.5,6). Most sacred of all is the memory, that 
to this place came our Lord Himself, and was baptized 
by John, “and, lo, the heavens were open unto Him, and 
He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and 
lighting upon Him: and lo, a voice from heaven, saying, 
This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” 
(Matt. 3.13,17). Sites on the Jordan are difficult to 
identify, but there seems no reason to doubt that the 
passage of the Israelites, who went straight towards 
Jericho; the passage of Elijah, and Elisha, who came 
from Jericho; the baptism of our Lord, who was led 
up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the 
devil all occurred in nearly an identical locality. Trad¬ 
ition has placed them at the Pilgrims’ Bathing Place. 
“Fords do not change in a river like the Jordan; roads 
are never altered in the East; and this must always have 
been, as it is now, the place of passage from Jericho to 
Gilead * * * the Lower Ford was only used for the 

passage to Moab.” (Tristram.) 

At Easter, the bathing-place of the Greeks is the re¬ 
sort of thousands of pilgrims, who come in a body from 
Jerusalem to Jericho, and assemble in multitudes in the 
neighborhood of Riha (page 126). Early in the morn¬ 
ing, at a given signal, the pilgrims leave their resting- 
place and proceed to the river, when old and young, rich 
and poor, without much regard to propriety, plunge into 
a promiscuous bath. The scene has been variously 
described by many travelers, who affirm that the Greeks 


124 


THE JORDAN. 


attach deep religious significance to the ceremony, which 
is to them the source of many blessings. The Roman 
Catholics have a bathing-place further to the south. 

Travelers who have come from the Dead Sea should 
make a point of bathing in the Jordan, and in fact, all 
travelers who can, doubtless will. 

The Banks of the River, all about here, are rich in 
varied foliage, oleanders stand in thick masses, beautiful 
in early spring, with their rose-colored blossoms; a 
few palms and sycamore (or sycamine), fig trees, many 
small jujube, or thorn trees, and its largest variety the 
Dom tree, tall poplars, willows and tamarisks along the 
banks of the river; old acacias, the Salvadora persica or 
mustard tree, the wild olive, balsam, castor-oil plant, the 
false apple of Sodom, and also the osher, the true Sodom 
apple, the rose of Jericho, the true hyssop, colocynth, 
camphire, zalicornia, salsola, inula, the crimson-flowered 
loranthus, and a variety of others. 

Here the lion in olden times had his lair, here the 
leopard still lurks, and wild boars find a home among the 
reeds. Birds abound in the neighborhood, the kingfisher, 
the sun-bird (remarkably like a humming-bird), turtle 
doves, nightingales, bulbuls, and a host of others. 

The following is the extract from Mr. MacGregor’s 
work, “Rob Roy on the Jordan”: 

“Jordan is the sacred stream not only of the Jew, who 
has ‘Moses and the prophets’; of the Christian, who 
treasures the memories of his Master’s life upon earth; 
of the cast-out Ishmaelite, who has dipped his wander¬ 
ing bloody foot in this river since the days of Hagar, 
but of the Moslem faithful also, wide scattered over the 
world, who deeply reverence the Jordan. No other riv¬ 
er’s name is known so long ago and so far away as this, 
which calls up a host of past memories from the Moham¬ 
medan on the plains of India, from the latest Christian 


THE JORDAN TO JERICHO. 


125 


settler in the Rocky Mountains of America, and from 
the Jew in every part of the globe. Nor is it only of 
the past that the name of Jordan tells, for in the more 
thoughtful hours of not a few, they hear it whispering 
to them before, strange shadowy truths of that future 
happier land that lies over the stream of death/’ 

From the Jordan to Jericho, 
Bethany and Jerusalem 

From the Ford of the Jordan the route is over the 
level plain, and the time occupied in the journey to 
Jericho is usually about two hours. 

On the right, as we proceeded, I saw an old square 
ruin, called Kasr el-Yehudi, or Castle of the Jews. A 
church once stood here, on the site where tradition af¬ 
firms St. John the Baptist had his dwelling. 

A long distance to the left there is a ruin called Kasr- 
el-Hajla, the Castle of Haglah; it marks the site of Beth- 
Hogla (Partridge House), a town of Benjamin on the 
border of Judah (Joshua 15.6,18.19-21). There is a large 
fountain here, and the Greeks from the Convent of Mar- 
Saba have been utilizing the ruins of the old castle for 
the purpose of raising a convent. One hour from the 
Jordan, we pass the Wady-el-Kelt (the Valley of Achor), 
where Achan and his family were stoned, and in con¬ 
sequence of the trouble brought by him upon Israel, was 
named after him. “J 0S Inia said, Why hast thou troubled 
us ? the Lord shall trouble thee this day. And all 
Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with 
fire, after they had stoned them with stones. * * * 

So the Lord turned from the fierceness of his anger. 
Wherefore the name of that place was called, The Valley 


126 


THE JORDAN TO JERICHO. 


of Achor (i. e., trouble) unto this day” (Joshua 7.24-26). 
This ravine corresponds also with the “Brook Cherith, 
which is before Jordan,” where Elijah was fed by ravens 
(1 Kings 17.1-7). 

Riha.—Formerly one of the most filthy spots in the 
Holy Land, the town consisting of a mere heap of rub¬ 
bish, of late years it has been much improved. The 
Russians have built a church and a large house to ac¬ 
commodate their pilgrims, and numbers of Greek and 
Russian monks have cultivated garden plots. When the 
carriage road is completed many foreigners will, doubt¬ 
less, take land in the district for garden produce. Riha 
is the site of the ancient Gilgal and of the modern 
Jericho. It was here that the Israelites first pitched their 
camp west of the Jordan, and set up twelve stones which 
they had taken from the bed of the stream (Joshua 
4.19,20). Here the people celebrated their first pass- 
over in the Promised Land, and the rite of circum¬ 
cision was performed on those who had been born in the 
wilderness. “And the Lord said unto Joshua, This day 
have I rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off you. 
Wherefore the name of the place is called Gilgal (i. e., 
rolling) unto this day” (Joshua 5.9). 

Here “the manna ceased on the morrow after they 
had eaten of the old corn of the land; neither had the 
children of Israel manna any more, but they did eat of 
the fruit of the land of Canaan that year” (Joshua 5.12). 
During all the early part of the conquest the camp re¬ 
mained here (Joshua 9.10). And it has been assumed, 
from Joshua 14, 15, that Joshua continued to reside here. 
At this place Joshua saw the vision of “a man over 
against him with his sword drawn in his hand, and 
Joshua went to him and said, Art thou for us or for 
our adversaries? and he said, Nay, but as Captain of 
the host of the Lord am I now come.” And Joshua was 



























































































JERICHO. 


127 


bidden “Loose thy shoe from off thy foot, for the place 
whereon thou standest is holy.” 

In later times the solemn assemblies of Samuel and 
Saul were celebrated here. Here the latter was made 
king; and when David came back from exile, the whole 
tribe of Judah assembled to welcome him, and to con¬ 
duct him over the Jordan, after the death of Absalom 
(2 Kings 19.15). 

Continuing our road I saw a large tower, which has 
been called the House of Zacchaeus. 

From Riha we traveled to ancient Jericho, passing 
through a forest, principally of thorn-trees. 


Jericho 

Jericho, the city of palm-trees (Deut. 34.3), and the 
scene of Joshua’s victories, is not to be confounded with 
modern Jericho, or Riha. It was the chief city of ancient 
Canaan, and must ever have been fruitful from its con¬ 
tiguity to the fountain of ’Ain-es-Sultan (page 128). 
There is nothing to be seen at Jericho save a few mounds 
of ruins. The palm-trees have all gone, the mighty city 
is in a heap, and, but for the fountain of Elisha, and the 
remnants of water courses, and a few traces of ancient 
foundations, there would be nothing to identify it. The 
history of its siege and capture by Joshua will be re¬ 
called by every traveler. 

“It was across yonder plain that the spies journeyed; 
round here went up those great walls on which Rahab 
had her house; over there in the mountains we seem as 
if we could make out the very place where the spies hid 
themselves; it was here that Joshua’s army went round 


128 


JERICHO. 


the city; and these hills echoed back the shrill blast of 
the trumpets which the priests blew. And when the 
seventh day had come, there went up from this spot the 
great shout of the people, mingling with the blasts of 
the trumpets, ‘and the walls of Jericho fell down flat.’ 
Then came that fearful panic, followed by blood, and 
havoc, and death. It was somewhere close by here that 
Rahab, with her kindred, sat with tear-dimmed eyes, and 
saw the smoke of the burning city ascending. And, 
perhaps, it was on some high standing ground near here 
that Joshua, in the presence of all Israel, stood, and 
pointing to that charred and ruined mass that had once 
been the strong city of Jericho, cried: ‘Cursed be the 
man before the Lord, that riseth up and buildeth this 
city Jericho: he shall lay the foundation thereof in his 
first-born, and in his youngest son shall he set up the 
gates of it’ (Joshua 6.26). Despite the curse, five hun¬ 
dred years afterwards a man was found who dared to 
rebuild the city, and who fulfilled the prediction by 
inheriting the curse (1 Kings 16.34).”—(Hodder.) 

At Jericho the last days of the Prophet Elijah were 
spent, and from here he went forth with Elisha to cross 
the waters of Jordan, and to witness that strange revela¬ 
tion of a chariot of fire and horses of fire that parted 
them both asunder when Elijah went up by a whirlwind 
into heaven (2 Kings 2.4,5,15). Jericho was long cele¬ 
brated for its beautiful groves and gardens, and these 
were given to Cleopatra by Anthony. Herod rebuilt the 
city, and erected many handsome buildings. In the time 
of our Lord, the Jericho visited by Him as He jour¬ 
neyed to Jerusalem was New Jericho. Here the two 
blind men were healed, and our Lord paid a visit to the 
house of Zacchaeus (page 127). 

’Ain-es-Sultan, or the Sultan’s Spring, is undoubtedly 
the spring of water which Elisha healed, and is called 


QUARANTANIA. 


129 


“Elisha’s Fountain.” The story runs thus: “And the 
men of the city said unto Elisha, Behold, I pray thee, 
the situation of this city is pleasant, as my Lord seeth: 
but the water is naught, and the ground barren. And 
he said, Bring me a new cruse, and put salt therein. 
And they brought it to him. And he went forth unto 
the spring of the waters, and cast salt in there, and said, 
Thus saith the Lord, I have healed these waters; there 
shall not be from thence any more dead or barren land. 
So the waters were healed unto this day, according to 
the saying of Elisha which he spake” (2 Kings 2.19-22). 
Just above the spring, the House of Rahab is pointed out, 
and some Roman pavement is still to be seen hard by. 

Among the minor reminiscences of Jericho may be 
mentioned that it was here that Hanun, the son of 
Nahash, took David's servants, and shaved them. “Then 
there went certain, and told David how the men were 
served. * * * And the king said, Tarry at Jericho 

until your beards be grown, and then return” (1 Chron. 
19.5). It will be remembered that this incident has 
given rise to a well-known English vulgarism. In Jericho 
Herod died, and was buried at Herodium. 

The story of his last illness and death at Jericho is 
known to all, and how, in his dying moments while the 
cries of the slaughtered innocents were still being wrung 
out, he gave orders for all the nobles who had attended 
him to be put to death, “that so at least his death might 
be attended with universal mourning.” 

Not the least imposing feature in the landscape is the 
high, precipitous mountain called Quarantania (Forty 
Days) the traditional scene of our Lord’s temptation. 
“And the devil, taking Him up into an high mountain, 
showed unto Him all the kingdoms of the world in a 
moment of time.” Something is curious about the moun¬ 
tain ; there hangs over it a very dark black cloud, and 


130 


JERICHO TO JERUSALEM. 


our guide said: “You see there the Mount of Tempta¬ 
tion; it has always a black cloud hanging over it.” The 
side facing the plain is perpendicular, white, and naked, 
and mid-way is burrowed by holes and caverns, where 
hermits used to retire for fasting and prayer, in imita¬ 
tion of the example of our Lord. On one side of the 
mount is a Greek Convent, which is fenced in by a strong 
stone wall. 


From Jericho to Bethany and 
Jerusalem 

(On horseback about six hours’ ride, and four by 
carriage.) 

Leaving Jericho, a few ruins are passed, and several 
interesting valleys are crossed. The view from the top 
of the Tall above ’Ain-es-Sultan is very extensive, and 
is thus described by Dr. W. M. Thomson in “The Land 
and the Book”: 

“I came up to see the sun rise once more over the 
eastern mountains and this impressive plain of Jericho. 
Behind us on the west, tower the gray and honey-combed 
cliffs of Quarantana, the Mount of Temptation; in the 
foreground the green oasis, created by ’Ain-es-Sultan, 
spreads to the village of Jericho; on the other side of the 
river the dark mountains of Moab and of Edom bound the 
eastern horizon, having the wide plain of Abel-Shittim at 
their feet, and the heights of Nebo and Pisgah above. Far 
away to the south the Dead Sea sleeps in its mysterious 
sepulchre. Northwards stretches the valley of the Jordan, 
sheltered by the lofty Kurn Surtabeh on the west, and 
the noble mountains of Gilead and Bashan on the east. 
This vast area of plain and mountain and river and sea 

























































BETHANY 









BETHANY. 


131 


is crowded with ancient sites, whose names recall many 
of the grandest, and some of the most sublime and ap¬ 
palling events in Biblical history. The mental impres¬ 
sion of this amazing panorama will abide with you while 
life may last.” 

Continuing on our journey we passed the boundary 
between Judah and Benjamin, and ascended to the top 
of the hill; turning to the right, Bethany lay before us. 

Before reaching Bethany one finds a Greek Chapel, 
where tradition says Martha met Jesus (St. John 11.20). 
“Then Martha, as soon as she heard that Jesus was com¬ 
ing, went and met Him.” 


Bethany 

This is a little ruined, but prettily situated village, with 
glorious views of the distant hills of Moab, and the 
glittering waters of the Dead Sea, and the green line of 
Jordan running through the valley. Vines, figs and 
olives cluster on the nearer hill slopes, and the luxuriant 
gardens and cornfields form a very pleasant contrast to 
the sterility of the hills which are nearer Jerusalem. 

Our guide pointed out to us the House of Martha and 
Mary, and said: “This is the house often spoken of 
by people throughout the world. In it lived two women 
of sacred fame—Martha, who was a woman of some¬ 
what earthly thoughts, and Mary, who fixed her mind 
on higher things, praying and fasting and performing 
noble deeds.” 

It is a great advantage to be near the scenes of the 
earthly life of our Saviour, and we hold dear and very 
valuable the places where He once had lived. Here 


132 


BETHANY. 


through the village of Bethany, we feel that more surely 
than in other places we are walking in the earthly foot¬ 
steps of our Redeemer. 

“Bethany, where the Sisters spread a thanksgiving 
feast to Him who raised their brother from the dead, and 
brought out the valuable ointment” (page 90). 

I saw here an old Tower called the Castle of Lazarus, 
and near to it is the so-called Tomb of Lazarus, in a 
vault reached by descending twenty-five steps. No one 
should fail to read the eleventh chapter of St. John here. 
Christ raised Lazarus to life, who had been four days 
in the grave (St. John 11.43,44). “He cried with a loud 
voice, Lazarus come forth. And he that was dead 
came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: 
and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith 
unto them, Loose him, and let him go.” Bethany was 
frequently the House of our Saviour (St. Matthew 21.17), 
“And He left them, and went out of the city into Beth¬ 
any; and He lodged there.” 

The site of the House of Simon the leper, in whose 
house Mary anointed Jesus, is here pointed out (St. John 
12.3). “Then took Mary a pound of ointment of spike¬ 
nard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and 
wiped His feet with her hair.” 

The colt on which Jesus made His triumphal entry 
into Jerusalem was here (St. Mark 11.1, 2). “And when 
they came nigh to Jerusalem into Bethpage and Bethany, 
at the Mount of Olives, He sendeth forth two of His 
disciples, and saith unto them, Go your way into the 
village over against you: and as soon as ye be entered 
into it ye shall find a colt tied, whereon never man sat; 
loose him and bring him.” Jesus blessed His disciples 
here (St. Luke 24.50). “And He led them out as far as 


FROM BETHANY TO JERUSALEM. 133 

to Bethany, and He lifted up His hands, and blessed 
them.” 

After passing Bethany, at the bend of the road before 
coming in sight of Jerusalem, is the place where the 
multitude met Jesus (St. Matthew 21.9). In order to 
continue the tour we come to the point where Zion is 
first seen, where Jesus wept over the city (St. Luke 
19.41-44). 

As soon as we returned to Jerusalem we went to our 
hotel and asked for heat, as there is great difference in 
the temperature between Jericho and Jerusalem. One 
of the Arab servants, who wore a red Turkish fez, 
brought a coal holder into the reception hall to start a 
fire, and as we sat near, warming ourselves, an ancient 
story was brought to mind. We thought of that time, 
centuries past, when soldiers, coming from the cold air 
of the hills, sought warmth and shelter within the court 
of the Palace of Caiaphas, and of how Peter, trembling 
with cold and fear, came among them as they sat by 
their fires. 

In ancient times Palestine was known as the land of 
milk and honey, and at the hotel we ate of delicious 
honey and drank the milk of goats which browse on the 
hills. These goats are of a variety which I have never 
seen elsewhere; their hair being long and brown, and 
their ears so long that they reach to the ground. 

Before leaving Jerusalem my wife and I decided to 
take a last view of the sacred places in the vicinity and 
with this object made a tour round the walls, outside 
of the city, which walk can be accomplished in an hour 
and twenty minutes. 

From Jerusalem to Samaria, Nazareth, Mt. Tabor, 
Cana of Galilee, Horns of Hattin, Sea of Galilee, Tiberias, 
Capernaum, Mt. Hermon, Damascus, Ba’albek, Mt. 
Lebanon, Beyrout, 


From Jerusalem to Samaria 

Leaving Jerusalem by the Damascus Gate, the road 
leads by the Tombs of the Kings and the hill Scopus. 
Looking back from this point, the view of Jerusalem is 
remarkably fine, the most wonderful and interesting in 
all the world, and usually—as it is most frequently the 
traveler’s last view of the Holy City—leaves an indelible 
impression on the mind. Nearly every traveler has 
described his emotions on leaving Jerusalem, and in the 
vast majority of instances his last view has been obtained 
from this spot. Here Crusaders, pilgrims of all ages, 
devotees of all phases of religion, have experienced emo¬ 
tion; and the place has therefore a sacredness of its own. 
If it be possible, every traveler should get his first view 
of Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, as you come 
from Bethany, and the last view from this hill of Scopus. 

Passing over a broad plain, and taking a northerly 
direction, we saw on the left the village of Shafat, with 
part of a ruined church or tower, and cisterns hewn in 
the rock. Shafat is identified by Mr. Porter as the site 
of the ancient Nob. About two miles beyond is Gibeah, 
the home of Saul; three miles further north is Ramah, 
the birthplace of Samuel, and three miles beyond that, 
El-Bireh, the ancient Beeroth. Tradition says El-Bireh is 
the place where the Holy Family stopped at the close of 
the first day after leaving Jerusalem, and turned back 
to the city, when they discovered that the child Jesus was 
not with them. 


134 


RAMAH OF BENJAMIN. 


135 


There are fine views from the hill of Tuleil-el-Ful, a 
short distance further on. Shafat, which is the site of 
the ancient Nob, is a priestly city of Benjamin, the place 
where the Tabernacle and Ark were stationed in the time 
of Saul, to which David fled (1 Sam. 21.4). Abimelech, 
the priest, having received Saul as a refugee, was in¬ 
formed against by Doeg the Edomite, and Nob was smit¬ 
ten with the edge of the sword in consequence (1 Sam. 
22.9-19). Tuliel-el-Ful (the little Hill of Beans) is, 
without doubt, the Gibeah of Saul, the native place of 
the first King of Israel, and the seat of government dur¬ 
ing the greater part of his reign (1 Sam. 10.26,14.2). 
This is the place where the seven descendants of Saul 
were hanged by the Amorites, and the scene of one of 
the most touching stories of motherly love on record. 
Two of her sons were amongst those who were thus 
slain, and they “were put to death in the days of harvest, 
in the first days in the beginning of barley harvest. And 
Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth, and spread 
it for her upon the rock, from the beginning of harvest 
until water dropped upon them out of heaven, and suf¬ 
fered neither the birds of the air to rest on them by day, 
nor the beasts of the field by night” (2 Sam. 21.10). 
Thus, for six months, and those the hottest of the year, 
the sorrowing woman watched the bodies of her sons, 
and proved the truth of the saying, “Love is stronger 
than death.” The site of the city is now a dreary and 
desolate waste, and the ruins are not of importance. 

The next site of any interest on the road is a hill on 
the right, where is the village of El-Ram, identical with 
Ramah of Benjamin—from whence there is a fine view. 
It was between Gibeon and Beeroth (Joshua 18.25). 
Here was the scene of that terrible story of the Levite 
(Judges 19) which brought about the great war with 
the Benjamites, It is not improbable that here was ful- 


136 


JERUSALEM TO SAMARIA. 


filled the prophecy, “A voice was heard in Rama, lamen¬ 
tation and bitter weeping” (Jer. 31.15; Matt. 2.17,18). 

Proceeding on our journey, we pass a ruined village 
on the ridge of a hill, supposed to be the site of Ataroth- 
addar, on the borders of Benjamin and Ephraim (Joshua 
16.5). In little more than half an hour we reach El- 
Bireh, a village with about 800 inhabitants, an excel¬ 
lent spring of water, ruins of reservoirs, and an old khan. 

On a piece of high ground are the remains of a church, 
which was built by the Crusaders, but the tradition 
dates only from the sixteenth century. El-Bireh is 
identified with the ancient Beeroth (wells)—one of the 
four Hivite or Gibeonite cities that made the league with 
Joshua (Joshua 9.17). It was allotted to Benjamin 
(Joshua 18.25), and is mentioned as the birth-place of 
one of David’s mighty men “Naharai, the Beerothite” (2 
Sam. 23.37). 

El-Bireh is the place where the Holy Family stopped 
(page 134). The journey from El-Bireh to Bethel occu¬ 
pies only about half an hour, and the principal things to 
be noted on the way are the reservoir in a cavern, and 
a fountain, ’Ain-el-Akabah. Then, in five minutes, 


Bethel, or Beitin 

Bethel is now but a poor village on a hill, with 
wretched huts, and about 500 inhabitants. Everywhere 
round about I saw traces of ancient materials, even for 
the building of the hovels of the people. There are the 
remains of a tower in the highest part of the village, and 
near these the walls of a church. 

An old cistern, constructed of solid masonry, is in a 


BETHEL. 


137 


grass-grown field hard by, and as the “wells of water” 
in Palestine are always surrounded with memorable asso¬ 
ciations, the traveler is advised to resort thither in 
order to picture the scenes of Bethel’s ancient glory. For 
the mere view, however, the ruins of the tower on the 
top of the hill present a wider field. 

Bethel was the place where Abraham reared an altar, 
and called upon the name of the Lord, who had just 
given this land to him, and to his seed after him, for¬ 
ever. From here he went into Egypt, and fell into 
temptation, dishonoring God before the heathen king, 
who sent him away out of the land. “And he went on 
his journeys from the south, even to Bethel, unto the 
place where his tent had been at the beginning, between 
Bethel and Hai; unto the place of the altar which he 
had made there at the first: and there Abram called on 
the name of the Lord” (Gen. 13.3-4), 

Here Jacob, weary with his forty miles’ journey, and 
away from home and kindred, “took of the stones of that 
place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down on 
that place to sleep” (Gen. 28.11). 

Here he saw the vision—the wondrous vision of angels 
ascending and descending the mystic ladder, and when 
he awoke he made the solemn vow which consecrated 
him to the service of God. 

The name of this place was Luz, but Jacob said, 
“This is none other than the house of God, and this is 
the gate of heaven, and he called the name of that place 
Bethel” (i. e., the House of God). When Jeroboam 
sought to wean the hearts of the people from the serv¬ 
ice of God at Jerusalem, he set up here the golden calf, 
against which the prophet of Judah was sent to cry in 
the name of the Lord, and, to confirm his mission by a 
sign, the altar was rent in pieces by invisible hands, 
and its ashes poured out. Jeroboam stretched out his 


138 


JERUSALEM TO SAMARIA. 


hand against the prophet, and it was withered until it 
was restored at the intercession of the prophet. Bethel, 
the House of God was changed into Bethaven, the House 
of Idols, until at length the prophecy, uttered by the 
man of Judah, was fulfilled in the person of Josiah, who 
utterly destroyed every memorial of the idolatrous wor¬ 
ship established by Jeroboam, and spared nothing in the 
city save the sepulchre of the man of God from Judah, 
who cried that day against the altar. For the whole of 
this dramatic story, see 1 Kings 12,13; 2 Kings 23.15-20. 

Here, or hereabouts, “there came forth two she bears 
out of the wood, and tare forty-and-two children”—little 
children who said to Elisha, “Go up, thou bald head.” 

After the Babylonish Captivity, Bethel was inhabited 
again by the Benjamites. In later times it was captured 
by Vespasian, and finally dwindled down to its present 
insignificance. 

A short distance from Bethel is Ai, celebrated as the 
scene of Joshua’s victory. 

Bethel presents an interesting subject to the devo¬ 
tional student. Here was the House of God, the place 
of altars, and of visions, and vows. Here arose the alien 
sanctuary, with its idolatrous altar, and here may be 
seen God’s protest against false worship. “The high 
places also of Avon, the sin of Israel, shall be destroyed; 
the thorn and the thistle shall come up on their altars” 
(Hosea 10.8). “For thus saith the Lord, Seek ye Me and 
ye shall live, but seek not Bethel. * * * Bethel shall 

come to naught” (Amos 5.4,5). 

Somewhat curiously, Bethel is not mentioned in any 
part of the New Testament. 

Leaving Bethel we enter at first upon rather a rough 
road, but in an hour, after ascending a hill, we reach the 
most fertile regions of Palestine, abounding with vine¬ 
yards and orchards, and still bearing everywhere the 


SHILOH. 


139 


signs of the blessing of Ephraim (Deut. 33.14,15). To 
the left is the village of ’Ain Yebrud, one of the most 
fertile spots in the fertile land of Ephraim, but the road 
to it is a hard one to travel. 

By and by we see Jifna, and ’Ain Sinia, and then the 
village of Yebrud. One or two ruins are passed, one of 
them called the Kasr-el-Berdawil, supposed to mean the 
Castle of Baldwin. We are now in an exquisite valley, 
or glen, called the Wady-el-Haramiyeh (i. e., Glen of the 
Robbers). At ’Ain-el-Haramiyeh, the Robbers’ Fountain, 
the water is remarkably good and the scenery exceed¬ 
ingly picturesque, but the reputation of the place is 
bad to the last degree, as its name implies. Leaving the 
glen with its caverns and cisterns, and profusion of ferns 
where the water drips down the cliff, we enter in a more 
open valley which is as romantic as any in Palestine, and 
soon arrive at Sinjil. 

Shiloh, Arabic Seilun, is now one large heap of ruins, 
and the first thought of the traveler, as he beholds the 
large mound covered with masses of rubbish, enormous 
stones, and pieces of broken columns, will be the par¬ 
ticularly graphic fulfillment of the prophecy of Jeremiah, 
who used it as a type of the destruction which should 
fall upon the house of the Lord in Jerusalem. 

“Go ye now unto my place which was in Shiloh, where 
I set my name at the first, and see what I did to it for 
the wickedness of my people Israel. And now, because 
ye have done all these works, saith the Lord, and 1 
spake unto you, rising up early and speaking, but ye 
heard not; and I called ye, but ye answered not; there¬ 
fore will I do unto this house, which is called by My 
name, wherein ye trust, and unto the place which I 
gave to you and to your fathers, as I have done to 
Shiloh” (Jer. 7.12-14). “I will make this house like 


140 


JERUSALEM TO SAMARIA. 


Shiloh, and will make this city a curse to all the nations 
of the earth” (Jer. 26.6). 

The history of Shiloh was remarkable. I viewed the 
ruins with the keenest interest, being satisfied that there 
can be no shadow of doubt that Seilun is the site of 
Shiloh. 

Here Joshua divided the land among the tribes, and 
here the Tabernacle was reared (Joshua 18). Around the 
ruins of the ancient well “the daughters of Shiloh” 
danced in the yearly festival (Judges 21.19-23). Here 
dwelt Eli, and to this place Hannah came yearly to the 
sacrifice, bringing with her the “little coat” for the boy 
Samuel, who ministered before the Lord (1 Sam. 1). 
Many eventful scenes occurred here—the sins of the 
sons of Eli, the sudden death of the old man, as he heard 
in one breath of the desolation of his own house, and 
the desolation of the house of God. With the loss of 
the Ark, Shiloh lost all; it was taken by the Philistines 
and never returned, and from that time the city is seldom 
even mentioned. Ahijah, the prophet, dwelt here, and 
hither in disguise came the wife of Jeroboam to learn 
the doom of that sinful house (1 Kings 14). 

Among the ruins I saw the remains of an ancient 
church. On the entablature of the doorway is sculp¬ 
tured an amphora between two wreaths. The front of 
the ruins is pyramidal, and four columns yet remain 
erect. Other fragments, denoting former greatness, are 
strewn about. 

The plain in the spring-time presents a green and well 
cultivated appearance, thus forming a striking contrast 
to the site on which Shiloh stands. 

Crossing now the cultivated fields, we descend to the 
Wady-el-Lubban, and by and by reach a fountain of 
excellent water, beside the ruined Khan el-Lubban. This 
is supposed to be the ancient Lebonah, and if so it estab- 


LEBONAH. 


141 


lishes the position of Shiloh. “Behold there is a feast 
of the Lord in Shiloh yearly, which is on the north side 
of Bethel, on the east side of the highway that goeth up 
from Bethel to Shechem, and on the south of Lebonah” 
(Judges 21.19). 

We are now on a much better road, passing the vil¬ 
lage of Es-Sawiyeh on the left, and in a few minutes 
more the khan of the same name. We rest for a while 
under a large oak-tree, and then descend by a rather 
sharp road to the Wady Yetma, then travel uphill to a 
bleak plateau, where a splendid view greets the traveler. 
Stretched before us is the great plain, surrounded by the 
mountains of Samaria. Before us on the left is Gerizim, 
and beyond that Ebal, while far away to the north is 
the snow-clad Hermon. Everywhere there is fertility, 
and although so many ages have passed since the dying 
patriarch gave his blessing on Ephraim, the “good 
things” remain, even to the olive and the corn, the fig 
and the vine, the fruitful bough by a well, and blessings 
prevailing unto the utmost bounds of the everlasting 
hills (Gen. 49.26). 

Instead of proceeding by the road on the left, which 
leads direct to Nabulus, we were advised to take the 
road on the right, which leads to Jacob’s Well. 

The plain is beautiful, level, and the horses that had 
for the past few days been picking their way over stony 
places, were probably as glad as the riders to have a 
good canter here, and as in Palestine the opportunities 
are so rare, it is well to make the most of them. 


Jacob’s Well 


is a very sacred spot. Its authenticity has never been 
doubted. There can be no question that it was here that 
our Saviour sat. Around us are the corn-fields to which 
He pointed when He said, “Lift up your eyes, and look 
on the fields, for they are white already to harvest” 
(John 4.35). Over there to the right is the parcel of 
ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. There is the 
opening between the two hills, with just a glimpse of 
Shechem beyond; there on the left is Gerizim, to which 
the woman of Samaria pointed, as she said, “Our fathers 
worshipped in this mountain.” “The well is not what we 
understand by that name. It is not a spring of water 
bubbling up from the earth, nor is it reached by excava¬ 
tion. It is a shaft cut in the living rock, about nine feet 
in diameter, and now upwards of seventy feet deep. As 
an immense quantity of rubbish has fallen into it, the 
original depth must have been much greater, probably 
twice what it is now. It was therefore intended by its 
first engineer as a reservoir, rather than as a means of 
reaching a spring. Then again, if any wall, as some 
suppose, once surrounded its mouth, on which the trav¬ 
eler could rest, it is now gone. The mouth is funnel- 
shaped, and its sides are formed by the rubbish of old 
buildings, a church having once been erected over it. 
But we can descend this funnel and enter a cave, as it 
were, a few feet below the surface, which is the remains 
of a small dome that once covered the mouth. Descend- 


142 



WATER CARRIER 








































































































. -S 































































\ 











JACOB’S WELL. 


143 


ing a few feet, we perceive in the floor an aperture partly 
covered by a flat stone, and leaving sufficient space 
through which we can look into darkness.”—(MacLeod.) 

“It was pleasant to sit here and think of what might, 
perhaps, have been some of the thoughts of the Saviour 
as He sat thus on the well, being wearied with His 
journey. Perhaps He was thinking of Abraham, who 
built his first altar in the land in this opening of the 
plain (Gen. 12.6), or of Jacob, whose only possession in 
the Land of Promise was here (33.19), and even then, 
bought and paid for as it had been, it was taken from 
him by the Amorites; but he reconquered it from them. 
‘I took it out of the hand of the Amorite with my sword 
and my bow,’ said the dying old man (Gen. 48.22), and 
left it to Joseph, who, long years afterwards, gave com¬ 
mandment concerning his bones, which were brought 
from Egypt and buried here (Joshua 24.32). Perhaps 
Christ thought of Joseph, wandering in that very field 
in search of his brethren (Gen. 37.15), and saw, in the 
persecution of the brethren, and the final victory of the 
beloved son, one of the divine pictures of the past, testi¬ 
fying of Himself; or, perhaps, His thoughts were dwell¬ 
ing upon that first gathering of all Israel, when first they 
came into the land, and there was set before them a 
blessing and a curse. Perhaps He heard again the ‘Amen’ 
of the people, as the curses were uttered from Ebal; or 
saw the smile of joy as the blessings on hearth and home, 
and land and business, were pronounced from Gerizim, 
and ‘sighed deeply’ as He grieved for the hardness of 
the hearts of that favored people, who had gone in the 
way of evil, and brought upon them all the full letter 
of awful doom pronounced upon the disobedient (see 
Deut. 11.28, 29, 30; Joshua 8.30,35). No wonder that, 
in the midst of associations such as these, He should 
say, ‘I have meat to eat that you know not of.’ Before 


144 


JERUSALEM TO SAMARIA. 


Him was unrolled, throughout that land, the volume of 
the ages, and in every page He read the Things con¬ 
cerning Himself.’ ”—(Hodder.) 

It is but a short and pleasant journey from Jacob’s 
Well to Nabulus. 


Nabulus or Shechem 

Nabulus, corrupted from Neapolis, or Flavia Neapolis, 
is the name given to the town in commemoration of its 
restoration by Titus Flavius Vespasian. Anciently it 
was Sichem or Shechem, and in the New Testament is 
called Sychar and Sychem. When Abraham arrived 
here the Canaanite was then in the land (Gen. 12.6). 
In Jacob’s time Shechem was a Hivite city, under the 
governorship of Hamor, the father of Shechem (Gen. 
33.18,19). The city was captured by Simon and Levi, 
who murdered all the male inhabitants and brought 
upon themselves the dying malediction of their father 
Jacob. “Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce, and 
their wrath, for it was cruel” (Gen. 34.49.5-7). Some¬ 
where about here Joseph was seized by his brethren, 
and sold to the Ishmaelites (Gen. 27.) ; here, too, he 
was buried (page 143). 

When the land was divided, Shechem fell to the lot 
of Ephraim (Joshua 20.7), but subsequently became a 
Levite city of refuge (Chron. 6.67). 

Here all Israel assembled in the time of Joshua. After 
the death of Solomon, Rehoboam and Jeroboam met here, 
and the result was the division of the kingdom, Shechem 
being made the seat of the new government under Jero¬ 
boam (1 Kings 12.1-25). It became the center of Samar- 


NABULUS. 


145 


itan worship after the return from captivity. Our Lord 
tarried here for two days, “and many believed on Him 
for the saying of the woman which testified, He told me 
all that ever I did. So when the Samaritans were come 
unto Him, they besought Him that He would tarry 
with them: and He abode there two days. And many 
more believed because of His own word; and said unto 
the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: 
for we have heard Him ourselves, and know that this is 
indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world” (John 4.39- 
42). 

During the history of the Crusaders Nabulus suffered 
considerably. From that time to the present, the 
people have been noted for their extreme exclusiveness, 
rigid adherence to their traditions, and for their quarrel¬ 
some spirit. 

Nabulus contains about 12,000 inhabitants, of whom 
about a hundred and fifty are Samaritans, the rest of 
the population being made up of Jews and Christians of 
the Greek, Catholic and Protestant Churches. The 
streets are narrow, and not over clean. The houses are 
well built, of stone, crowned with cupolas. The people 
have a bad reputation for their discourteous treatment 
of strangers, and until recently Christian visitors were 
greeted with cries of Nozrani! (Nazarene!), accom¬ 
panied by pelting of stones. The staple trade of the 
town is the manufacture of soap; the Bazaars are well 
stocked, and present the usual aspect of Eastern bazaars. 

For mere sightseers, the curiosities of the town are 
not extensive. There is a large Mosque, which was once 
a Crusader’s Church, consecrated to St. John, and proba¬ 
bly belonging to the Knights of St. John. A curious 
legend attaches to a smaller mosque in the southwest 
part of the town (once a Samaritan Synagogue)—name¬ 
ly, that it stands on the site where Jacob sat, when his 


146 


JERUSALEM TO SAMARIA. 


sons spread before him the blood-stained coat of Joseph 
(see page 111). There is nothing of interest in Shechem, 
however, so great as the Samaritan people, whose quar¬ 
ter is in the southwestern part of the town. For nearly 
three thousand years they have lived here, bound up in 
their own prejudices, separate from all other people of 
the earth, having their own Pentateuch, and retaining 
their own forms of service, sacrifice and worship. While 
empires and dynasties have risen and passed away, these 
people still hold their own, and retain all the marked 
peculiarities of their race. 

The History of the Samaritans it is impossible to even 
outline in the limited space of this work. The word 
“Samaritan” only occurs once in the Old Testament (2 
Kings 17.29), and then in a sense wholly different from 
that in which it is used in the New. The origin of the 
people is doubtful, but it is supposed by some that they 
were Assyrians; and by others that they were a remnant 
of the Israelitish people who were not carried away into 
captivity; and by others that they were colonists from 
various foreign nations who took possession during the 
Captivity. The account given in 2 Kings 17.24 is as 
follows: “The King of Assyria brought men from Baby¬ 
lon, and from Cuthah, and from Ava, and from Hamath, 
and from Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of 
Samaria instead of the children of Israel: and they pos¬ 
sessed Samaria, and dwelt m the cities thereof.” When 
the Jews returned from Babylon, the Samaritans—who, 
after instruction, “feared the Lord, but served their own 
gods”—desired to assist Zerubbabel in rebuilding the 
Temple, but were repulsed, and then, their anger aroused, 
hostility to the Jew and his worship burst forth. They 
determined to rival Jersualem by a temple of their own, 
and built one on Mount Gerizim, in the days of Manas- 
seh. Of course, the animosity was now increased be- 





















SAMARITAN HIGH PRIEST, AND PENTATEUCH ROLL AT SHECHEM 
-SUPPOSED WRITING OF ABISHUA, GREAT GRANDSON OF AARON. 















NABULUS. 


147 


tween the rival races. It became a sin on either side to 
extend the rites of hospitality, and the feeling expressed 
by the woman of Samaria was an index of the feeling 
which for ages existed between the two races, and, to 
some extent, exists to-day. “How is it that thou, being 
a Jew, asketh drink of me, which am a woman of Sa¬ 
maria? for the Jew« have no dealings with the Samari¬ 
tans/’ 

The Samaritans believe in one God; they expect the 
Advent of the Messiah; they believe “in the resurrec¬ 
tion of the body, and the life of the world to come.” 
They only acknowledge the authority of the Pentateuch 
in the Old Testament writings; and their literature, 
which is exceedingly meagre, consists principally of 
hymns and commentaries, and a one-sided history of 
their own nation. They observe the Jewish Sabbath, 
and all the principal feasts which were ordained by 
Moses—to wit, the Passover (page 149), the Feast of 
Atonement, the Feast of Tabernacles, and others. 

In the Samaritan Quarter, in the southwest part of 
the town, is their synagogue—a small, oblong chamber; 
uncomfortably modern. Divine service is performed in 
the Samaritan dialect, the high-priest—whose office is 
hereditary, and whose salary consists of tithes—leading 
the prayers and praises, after a manner not always agree¬ 
able to the taste of those who hear. 

The great curiosity of the synagogue is the celebrated 
Samaritan Codex of the Pentateuch—a document which 
has given rise to a vast amount of discussion. It has 
been affirmed that it was written in the time of Moses 
and again, that it was the production of a grandson of 
Aaron. That it is a curious, interesting and ancient 
MS., there is no doubt; nor is there much doubt that it 
is little, if any, older than the Christian era. Some cap¬ 
tious critics have affirmed that it is not more than three 


148 


JERUSALEM TO SAMARIA. 


hundred years old, but it must be borne in mind that 
the Samaritan MS. is rarely shown to ordinary travel¬ 
ers for fear of wearing it out by over-much use, and 
that a comparatively modern copy has to do duty for 
the old one. 

The situation of Nabulus, every traveler will admit, is 
very beautiful, and from every point of view the prospect 
is pleasing. Beautiful foliage, luxuriant vegetation, ter¬ 
races upon terraces of fruit, gardens, orchards, babbling 
brooks, white-topped houses, pleasant hills, and deep 
valleys. There is everything that can be crowded to¬ 
gether in a limited space to make up a perfect picture. 

It is in the midst of beautiful scenes in nature that per¬ 
haps the distress at witnessing personal misfortune is 
most experienced, and no traveler can stay an hour in 
Nabulus without hearing the plaintive cry of the Lepers. 
Unhappily, these poor creatures intrude their misfor¬ 
tunes before the gaze of the stranger, who is often sorely 
tried at witnessing the distorted faces and wasting limbs, 
and to hear the horrible and husky wail peculiar to 
themselves. These miserable folk are identical in their 
habits and appearances with those who were formerly 
found at the Zion Gate in Jerusalem (page 71). They 
dwell apart, and marry only amongst themselves. Their 
children, until the age of ten or eleven, are as pleasing 
in appearance as other children, but after that age the 
deadly taint exhibits itself, and they, too, dwell apart 
in the leper community. 


Mount Gerizim 


No traveler should omit the ascent of Gerizim (the 
Mount of Blessing). The ascent is steep, especially 
towards the top, and the fear of committing cruelty to 
animals will probably prevent kind-hearted folk from 
using the horses which have laboriously brought them 
to Shechem, as they can procure fresh ones, or donkeys, 
in the town. Leaving Shechem, from the usual camping 
ground on the west we pass through the valley, and, 
soon after commencing the ascent, reach the spring 
Ras-el-’Ain; then the ascent becomes steeper, a large 
plateau is reached, and turning to the left, the open 
space, where the Samaritans encamp during the Feast 
of the Passover, is seen. 

In case the traveler should have no opportunity of 
witnessing this interesting Festival, he will read with 
great interest the following description: “On the tenth 
of the month the sacrificial lambs are bought. These 
may be either kids of goats or lambs; the latter being 
generally, if not at all times, chosen. They must be a 
year old, males, and ‘without blemish.’ The number 
must be according to the number of persons who are 
likely to be able to keep the feast. At present they are 
five or six, as the case may be. During the following 
days, which are days of preparation, these are carefully 
kept, and cleanly washed—a kind of purification to fit 
them for the paschal service; a rite, in all probability, 


149 


150 


JERUSALEM TO SAMARIA. 


always observed in connection with the temple service 
(John 5.1). Early on the morning of the fourteenth day, 
the whole community, with few exceptions, close their 
dwellings in the city, and clamber up Mount Gerizim; 
and on the top of this, their most sacred mountain, pitch 
their tents in a circular form, there to celebrate the most 
national of all their solemnities. I, and the friends who 
had joined me at Jerusalem, had pitched our tent in the 
valley, at the foot of Gerizim; and on the morning of 
the 4th of May, we clambered up the mountain. 

“On reaching the encampment, friendly voices greeted 
us from several tents, and having visited those best 
known to us, we rested for a while with our friend Am- 
ram. Presently we took a stroll up to the temple ruins, 
and from thence had a perfect view of the interesting 
scene. The tents, ten in number, were arranged in a 
kind of circle, to face the highest point of the mountain, 
where their ancient temple formerly stood, but is now 
lying in ruins. 

“Within a radius of a few hundred yards from the 
place where I stood, clustered all the spots which make 
Gerizim to them the most sacred mountain, the house of 
God. * * * About half past ten, the officials went 
forth to kindle the fire to roast the lambs. For this 
purpose a circular pit is sunk in the earth, about six feet 
deep, and three feet in diameter, and built around with 
loose stones. In this a fire made of dry heather, and 
briars, etc., was kindled, during which time Yacub stood 
upon a large stone, and offered up a prayer suited for 
the occasion. Another fire was then kindled in a kind 
of sunken trough, close by the platform, where the serv¬ 
ice was to be performed. Over this two caldrons, full 
of water, were placed, and a short prayer offered * * * 
There were forty-eight adults, besides women and chil¬ 
dren, the women and the little ones remaining in the 


MOUNT GERIZIM. 


151 


tents. The congregation were in their ordinary dress, 
with the exception of the two officers, and two or three 
of the elders, who were dressed in their white robes, as 
in the synagogue. 

“A carpet was laid on the ground near the boiling 
caldrons, where Yacub stood to read the service, assisted 
by some of the elders—all turning their faces towards 
the site of the temple. Six lambs now made their ap¬ 
pearance, in the custody of five young men who drove 
them. These young men were dressed in blue robes of 
unbleached calico, having their loins girded. Yacub, 
whilst repeating the service, stood on a large stone in 
front of the people, with his face towards them. * * * 
At mid-day the service had reached the place where the 
account of the paschal sacrifice is introduced: ‘And the 
whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill 
it in the evening’ (Exod. 12.6), when, in an instant, one 
of the lambs was thrown on its back by the blue-clad 
young men, and the shochet, one of their number, with 
his flashing knife, did the murderous work with rapidity. 
I stood close by, on purpose to see whether he would 
conform to the rabbinical rules; but the work was done 
so quickly that I could observe nothing more than that 
he made two cuts. The other lambs were despatched 
in the same manner. Whilst the six were thus lying 
together, with their blood streaming from them, and in 
their last convulsive struggles, the young shochetim 
dipped their fingers in the blood, and marked a spot on 
the foreheads and noses of the children. The same was 
done to some of the females; but to none of the male adults. 
The whole male congregation now came up close to the 
reader; they embraced and kissed one another, in con¬ 
gratulation that the lambs of their redemption had been 
slain. 

“Next came the fleecing of the lambs—the service 


152 


JERUSALEM TO SAMARIA. 


still continuing. The young men now carefully poured 
the boiling water over them, and plucked off their fleeces. 
Each lamb was then lifted up, with its head downwards, 
to drain off the remaining blood. The right fore-legs, 
which belonged to the priest, were removed and placed 
on the wood, already laid for the purpose, together with 
the entrails, and salt added, and then burnt; but the 
liver was carefully replaced. 

“The inside being sprinkled with salt, and the ham¬ 
strings carefully removed, the next process was that of 
spitting. For this purpose, they had a long pole, which 
was thrust through from head to tail, near the bottom 
of which was a transverse peg, to prevent the body from 
slipping off. The lambs were now carried to the oven, 
which was by this time well heated. Into this they were 
carefully lowered, so that the sacrifices might not be 
defiled by coming into contact with the oven itself. This 
accomplished, a hurdle, prepared for the purpose, was 
placed over the mouth of the oven, well covered with 
moistened earth, to prevent any of the heat escaping. 
By this time it was about two o’clock, and this part of 
the service was ended. 

“At sunset the service was recommenced. All the 
male population, with the lads, assembled around the 
oven. A large copper dish, filled with unleavened cakes 
and bitter herbs rolled up together, was held by Phineas 
Ben Isaac, nephew of the priest; when, presently, all 
being assembled, he distributed them among the congre¬ 
gation. The hurdle was then removed, and the lambs 
drawn up one by one; but, unfortunately, one fell off 
the spit, and was taken up with difficulty. Their ap¬ 
pearance was anything but inviting, they being burnt 
as black as ebony. Carpets were spread ready to receive 
them; they were then removed to the platform where 
the service was read. Being strewn over with bitter 


MOUNT GERIZIM. 


153 


herbs, the congregation stood in two files, the lambs 
being in a line between them. Most of the adults had 
now a kind of robe around the waist, and staves in their 
hands, and all had their shoes on. ‘Thus shall ye eat it; 
with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and 
your staff in your hand’ (Exod. 12.11). The service 
was now performed by Amram, which continued for 
about fifteen minutes; and when he had repeated the 
blessing, the congregation at once stooped, and, as if 
in haste and hunger, tore away the blackened masses 
piecemeal with their fingers, carrying portions to the 
females and little ones in the tents. In less than ten 
minutes the whole, with the exception of a few frag¬ 
ments, had disappeared. These were gathered and 
placed on the hurdle, and the area carefully examined, 
every crumb picked up, together with the bones, and all 
burnt over a fire kindled for the purpose in a trough, 
where the water had been boiled. ‘And ye shall let 
nothing of it remain until the morning; and that which 
remaineth of it until the morning ye shall burn it with 
fire’ (Exod. 12.10). Whilst the flames were blazing and 
consuming the remnant of the paschal lambs, the people 
returned cheerfully to their tents.”—(Mills.) 

In about ten minutes from the camping place, the 
Summit of Gerizim is reached. It is nearly three thou¬ 
sand feet above the level of the sea, and consists of a 
large open space, at one end of which are the ruins of a 
church or castle; the walls are thick and of hewn stones, 
probably belonging to a period anterior to “the castle” 
which was built by Emperor Justinian. There is also 
a Moslem weiy , a reservoir, and a few other ruins, and 
part of a pavement. Near to the castle are some massive 
stones, identified by a legend with the twelve stones 
brought up from the Jordan and erected at Gilgal as a 
memorial (page 126). 


154 


JERUSALEM TO SAMARIA. 


Near here is a piece of rock, which is stated to have 
been the altar of their great temple; and as.the Samari¬ 
tans arrogate to themselves the Jewish history, they say 
that Abraham offered up Isaac here, that Jacob had the 
vision of the heavenly ladder here, etc., etc. It is the 
sacred place of the Samaritans; towards it they always 
turn in prayer; they never approach it but with uncov¬ 
ered feet, and here they celebrate their most sacred fes¬ 
tival (see page 149). The view from the table-land on the 
summit is exquisite. In the far west are the waters of 
the Mediterranean; in the north, the snowy top of Her- 
mon, partly intercepted by Mount Ebal; below, to the 
east, is the fruitful plain of Makhna, and beyond, the 
Mountains of Gilead. 

Mount Ebal, on the north side of the valley of Nabu- 
lus, is celebrated for its view, which is finer than that 
from Gerizim. The ascent is by no means difficult; and 
the view of the mountains of Galilee, from Carmel on 
the left to Gilboa on the right, with Tabor and Safed, 
and a host of memorable places, is well worth the fatigue, 
if time permits. 

From either mountain, the scene recorded in Joshua 
8.33,34, will be recalled with interest, for in the valley 
of Nabulus and on the hillsides, the tribes of Israel were 
assembled, while the Levites lifted up their voices, and 
pronounced from Gerizim blessings upon the obedient, 
and from Ebal cursings upon the rebellious. “And all 
Israel, and their elders, and officers, and their judges, 
stood on this side the ark and on that side, before the 
priests and the Levites, which bare the ark of the cove¬ 
nant of the Lord, as well the stranger, as he that was 
born among them; half of them over against Mount 
Gerizim, and half of them over against Mount Ebal; as 
Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded before, 
that they should bless the people of Israel. And after- 


SAMARIA. 


155 


wards Joshua read all the words of the law, the bless¬ 
ings and the cursings, according to all that is written 
in the book of the law.” It is a curious fact that, owing 
to the formation of the hills, they form, as it were, a 
natural sounding-board; and many travelers have af¬ 
firmed that, standing in the plain, they have been able 
to hear distinctly the utterances of friends stationed on 
the mountains, who have gone there to test the accuracy 
of the statements of Moses and Joshua (Deut. 27.11-13). 

The journey from Nabulus to Samaria is through the 
beautiful valley, where every variety of vegetation will 
be seen. There are many brooks and streams of water, 
which divide in this valley; those on the east flowing 
to the Jordan, and those on the west to the Mediter¬ 
ranean. 

Several pleasant-looking villages, mostly on hills, we 
noticed on either hand; and in the distance, standing 
alone in the valley, we saw the Hill of Sebastiyeh. 


Samaria, 

or Sebastiyeh, from Sebaste, the name given it by Herod, 
is now nothing more than a small, dirty village, sur¬ 
rounded by hedges of cactus and ruins, speaking elo¬ 
quently of the former grandeur through their contrast 
with the present desolation. As at Shiloh (page 139), so 
here, the burden of prophecy comes to the mind of the 
tiaveler as he looks upon the desolate scene, and hears 
the word of the Lord, “Samaria shall become desolate, 
for she hath rebelled against her God” (Hosea 13.16). 
“I will make Samaria as a heap of the field, and as a 
plantings of a vineyard, and I will pour down the stones 


156 


SAMARIA. 


thereof into the valley, and I will discover the founda¬ 
tions thereof” (Micah 1.6). 

The city was built by Omri, King of Israel, and be¬ 
came the capital of the ten tribes until the Captivity. 
It took its name from Shemer, from whom the hill was 
purchased. It was the center of idolatrous worship. 
Here Ahab built the Temple of Baal, which was de¬ 
stroyed by Jehu. “He reared up an altar for Baal in 
the house of Baal, which he had built in Samaria. And 
Ahab made a grove, and Ahab did more to provoke the 
Lord God of Israel than all the Kings of Israel that were 
before him” (1 Kings 16.32,33). 

During his reign the city was besieged by the Syrians; 
but Ben-hadad of Damascus was defeated by a small 
band of Israelites. The story of the siege of Samaria, 
as recorded in 2 Kings 6.24-33, will be recalled by every 
traveler as he walks through the ruins, and those strik¬ 
ing incidents (1) of the compact between the starving 
women: “Give thy son, that we may eat him to day, and 
we will eat my son to morrow”; and (2) of the “four 
leprous men who sat at the entering in of the gate, and 
said one to another, Why sit we here until we die?” and 
then entering into the city, found “there was no man 
there, neither voice of man,” for the Syrians had fled in 
terror, even for their life. Again and again the city was 
besieged, and ultimately it was captured by the Assyr¬ 
ians, in the reign of Hosea, the inhabitants being carried 
into captivity (2 Kings 17.24). After various revivals, 
the city was taken by John Hyrcanus. Pompey restored 
it to Syria, and Augustus gave it to Herod the Great, 
who rebuilt it with great magnificence, and named it 
Sebaste (the Greek translation of the Latin name Au¬ 
gustus). 

It was to this Samaria that St. Philip came, preaching 
the gospel. “Then Philip went down to the city of 


SAMARIA. 


157 


Samaria, and preached Christ unto them. And the peo¬ 
ple with one accord gave heed unto those things which 
Philip spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he 
did. * * * And there was great joy in that city” 

(Acts 8.5-8). As Nabulus grew in importance, Sebaste 
began to decay, and finally declined until it has become 
as a heap of ruins. “Woe to the crown of pride * * * 
whose glorious beauty is a fading flower” (Isaiah 28.1). 

In walking through the village of Sebastiyeh, we no¬ 
ticed how traces of ancient buildings are to be found, 
even built up into the most miserable hovels, so that 
in some bare and filthy rooms, we saw slender shafts 
of columns, or curiously wrought capitals, intended 
once to please the eyes of kings. There are many 
interesting (if genuine) sites pointed out, such as the 
gate where the lepers sat; the palace of Ahab, the tem¬ 
ple of Herod, the old market, etc. The principal sight 
is the Church of St. John, a very picturesque ruin. It 
was a Christian church, but has now become a mosque. 
There are traces of a nave with two aisles. On the 
walls are crosses of the Knights of St. John. In the 
center of an open court, there is a dome over the tradi¬ 
tional sepulchre of St. John the Baptist. In order to 
enter the tomb, a number of steps have to be descended, 
and here is pointed out the tomb of the Baptist, the 
tomb of Obadiah, besides one or two others. There is 
also shown a massive stone door, four feet high, said to 
be the actual door of St. John’s prison. It will be remem¬ 
bered that Josephus states that St. John was beheaded 
in the castle of Machserus, on the Dead Sea (page 119). 
St. Jerome is the first writer who refers to the tradition 
that St. John was buried here. The tomb is called by 
the Arabs Neby Yahya. 

The Colonnade, or “Street of the Columns,” many of 
which are monoliths, extending round the hill side, are 


158 


SAMARIA TO NAZARETH. 


more interesting than anything else to be seen in Sa¬ 
maria. “The remains of the ancient city consist mainly 
of colonnades, which certainly date back to the time of 
the Herods, and perhaps many of the columns are much 
older. * * * The grand colonnade runs along the south 
side of the hill, down a broad terrace, which descends 
rapidly towards the present village. The number of 
columns, whole or broken, along this line, is nearly one 
hundred , and many others lie scattered about on lower 
terraces. They are of different sizes, and quite irregu¬ 
larly arranged, but when perfect it must have been a 
splendid colonnade. The entire hill is covered with rub¬ 
bish, indicating the existence and repeated destruction 
of a large city.”—(The Land and the Book.) 


From Samaria to Nazareth 

Leaving Samaria we descend the hill, where are the 
columns, and enter the Valley of Barley, and in about 
half an hour arrive at the pleasant village of Burka, 
where there are some fine old olive trees, under which 
travelers often camp. When the top of the hill is 
reached, a very fine view bursts on the sight—an exten¬ 
sive plain studded with villages. Descending into the 
valley, a village named Jeb’a—supposed to be a Gibeah, 
of which there were many—is seen, and here the short¬ 
cut from Nabulus joins the main road. 

After passing through a pleasant glen, a broad valley 
is entered. On a hill to the left stands the fortress of 
Sdnur, besieged in 1830 by the Pasha of Acre, and de¬ 
stroyed by Ibrahim Pasha. 

Ascending a rough and rocky road, a grand and impres- 


SAMARIA TO NAZARETH. 


159 


sive view is seen, and here is the Plain of Esdraelon, 
with all its crowding memorial-places round about, and 
in the far distance stands the white-robed Hermon. 
From here, too, are seen the ruins of Dothan, whither 
Joseph came seeking his brethren, and the Ishmaelites, 
passing by, bought him, at the instigation of Reuben, 
for thirty pieces of silver (Gen. 37.). 

It was at Dothan that Elisha the prophet tarried dur¬ 
ing the time that Ben-hadad was marching towards 
Samaria. Fearing the prophet of Israel, who, it was 
said, revealed to the king of Israel all his movements, 
Ben-hadad sent a host to compass the city of Dothan 
with horses and chariots. The servant of the man of 
God feared, but Elisha said, “Fear not: for they that 
be with us are more than they that be with them. And 
Elisha prayed, and said, Lord, I pray thee, open his 
eyes, that he may see. And the Lord opened the eyes 
of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the moun¬ 
tain”—probably the mountain on which the traveler 
stands—“was full of horses and chariots of fire round 
about Elisha.” Then were the Syrians smitten with 
blindness, and were led into Samaria (2 Kings 6.13-23). 

A rocky, slippery descent into the valley, where the 
village Kubatiyeh is seen, and then through a narrow 
glen, famous in past days as a stronghold of robbers, 
and we arrived at the prosperous and beautifully situ¬ 
ated village of Jenin. 

Jenin is, without doubt, the En-gannim (Fountain of 
Gardens) of Scripture. It was a town on the border of 
Issachar, allotted to the Gershonite Levites (Joshua 
19.21-29). The village has about 3,000 inhabitants, its 
“gardens” are exceedingly fruitful, and the “spring” still 
supplies the people with excellent water. 


160 


SAMARIA TO NAZARETH. 


Josephus mentions this town, under the name of 
Ginea, as one of the boundaries between Samaria and 
Galilee. 


The Plain of Esdraelon, 

on the edge of which Jenin stands, is the Plain of Jezreel, 
the Hebrew form of the Greek Esdraelon (Joshua 17.16) ; 
called also Esdra-Elon (Judith 7.3). In Zech. 12.11, it 
is called the Valley of Megiddo; and by the Apostle 
John, Armageddon— i. e. y the city of Megiddo (Rev. 
16.16). This plain stretches from the Mediterranean 
between Akka on the north and the head of Carmel on 
the south, across central Palestine, with an average 
width of ten or twelve miles, to the river Jordan on the 
east. It forms a depression between the mountains of 
Lebanon on the north, and those of Samaria on the south. 
It is, with but few slight undulations here and there, 
a level plain, exceedingly rich, and capable of a high 
state of cultivation. Unfortunately, plundering Arabs 
make the place so insecure, that gigantic thistles and 
wildernesses of weeds take the place of profitable cultiva¬ 
tion ; and nowhere, except in some of the eastern 
branches of the plain, is there a single dwelling. 

Looking across the plain, as we leave Jenin, we have 
on the north Tabor and Little Hermon (the former not 
visible until some distance has been traversed) ; on the 
east, the mountains of Gilboa, terminating in the ridge, 
where the story of the death of Saul and Jonathan is 
localized; on the south the mountains of Samaria. This 
plain has been a battlefield from the days of Barak to 
Napoleon. Warriors out of every nation which is under 


THE PLAIN OF ESDRZELON. 


161 


heaven have pitched their tents in the Plain of Esdraelon, 
and have beheld the different banners of their nations 
wet with the dews of Tabor and of Hermon.—(Dr. 
Clarke.) 

Esdraelon was the frontier of Zebulun (Deut. 33.18), 
and the special portion of Issachar. Here Barak, de¬ 
scending from Mount Tabor, and ten thousand men after 
him, discomfited Sisera, whose defeat was owing, in 
great measure, to his having been drawn to the river 
Kishon—a river which drains the plain into the Medi¬ 
terranean. “The river of Kishon swept them away; that 
ancient river, the river Kishon” (Judges 5.21). Here 
Josiah the king came to fight with Necho, the king of 
Egypt, and received his death-wound (2 Chron. 35.20- 
25). From generation to generation Esdraelon was the 
scene of plunder and of war; the Canaanites who, under 
Jabin, King of Canaan, had nine hundred chariots of 
iron, which could work fearful mischief on the level 
plain, mightily oppressed the children of Israel for 
twenty years (Judges 4.3). Then the Midianites pre¬ 
vailed against Israel; “and so it was when Israel had 
sown, that the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites 
and the children of the East, even they came up against 
them, * * * and destroyed the increase of the earth 

* * * for they came up with their cattle and their 

tents, and they came as grasshoppers for multitude” 
(Judges 6.1-6). It was held for a long time by the Phil¬ 
istines, who had a fortress at Bethshean (1 Sam. 29, 
31), and the Syrians frequently swept through the plain 
with their armies (1 Kings 20.26). 

From Jenin to Haifa, Acre, and Mount Carmel, takes 
about thirteen hours. 

As we proceed on our journey towards Nazareth, the 
different points of interest will be more particularly 
mentioned. 


162 


SAMARIA TO NAZARETH. 


There is a direct caravan route across the plain, but 
it is exceedingly uninteresting. We shall therefore take 
the route which contains the most interest. 

After leaving Jenin, several very small villages are 
passed. Our dragoman pointed out, on the left, the 
village of Ta’-annuk, the Taanach of Joshua 17.11, and 
Megiddo, Judges 5.17. Passing under the bare moun¬ 
tains of Gilboa (in Arabic, Jebel Faku’a), we notice on 
the right a Moslem shrine called Neby Mezar, and soon 
afterwards reach Zer’in, the ancient Jezreel. Zer’in is 
a wretched little village, surrounded by heaps of rub¬ 
bish, and burrowed with innumerable holes, which are 
used as storehouses-, where produce and other things 
are garnered out of reach of the thievish Bedouins. The 
view is wide and interesting, commanding the Plain of 
Esdraelon as far as to Carmel on the one side, and the 
Jordan Valley on the other. On the north of Zer’in is 
that part of the plain known as the Valley of Jezreel. 

Associations crowd upon us. Here was the palace 
of Ahab, not a trace of which remains. Looking down 
upon the fields, we saw the one which Ahab coveted of 
Naboth. “Give me thy vineyard, that I may have it for 
a garden of herbs, because it is near unto my house.” 
The traveler will read with interest 1 Kings 21—how 
Naboth clave to the inheritance of his fathers, how 
Ahab fretted over the one crook in his lot, how Jezebel 
proceeded with her wicked machinations, how Elijah the 
Tishbite came down with the messages of wrath, and 
how Jezebel, as “she painted her face, and tired her 
head, and looked out at a window,” was thrown out on to 
the stone paving of the court, and the wild pariah dogs 
came as the instruments of destruction, fulfilling the 
saying, “Thus saith the Lord, in the place where dogs 
licked the blood of Naboth, shall dogs lick thy blood, 
even thine.” A writer has well said, “God has written 


FOUNTAIN OF JEZREEL. 163 

in letters of blood across that field of Naboth, ‘Beware 
of covetousness!’ ” 

It was “in the portion of Naboth the Jezreelite” that 
Jehu, who came up the valley “driving furiously,” put 
Jehoram to death. And here Ahaziah was slain (2 
Kings 9.15-26, 30-37). It was in the valley of Jezreel 
that Gideon gained his victory over the Midianites (see 
page 164). 

From Zer’in there is a road goes direct to Nazareth, 
but the only place of interest passed is Fuleh. We took 
the more interesting route. 

Fuleh, which can be seen from Zer’in, means “a 
bean,” but what the name has to do with the place ap¬ 
pears uncertain. In the time of the Crusaders, there was 
a castle belonging to the Templars and Knights of St. 
John standing here, which was taken by Saladin; the 
ruins on the mount are the remains of this castle. In 
1799 it was the scene of a great battle between the 
French and the Turks, known in history as the battle of 
Mount Tabor. Kleber, with a handful of men—about 
1,500—kept the Syrian host, consisting of about 25,000. 
at bay for about six hours; he was nearly being worsted, 
when Napoleon, with a yet smaller handful of men— 
about 600—came to his aid, and the Turks, thinking a 
large army was upon them, fled, and the French arms 
were victorious. 

Instead of going direct across the valley to Shunem. 
we decided to make a short detour to the east, in order 
to visit ’Ain Jalud, or “the Fountain of Jezreel,” some¬ 
times called the “Fountain of Gideon.” The water of 
the fountain is clear as crystal, issuing from a rocky 
cavern. It was here that Gideon was encamped against 
the Midianites, and at this fountain each of the three 
hundred picked men lapped “the water with his tongue, 
as a dog lappeth. * * * And the Lord said unto Gid- 


164 


SAMARIA TO NAZARETH. 


eon, By the three hundred men that lapped, will I save 
you, and deliver the Midianites into thine hand!” While 
“the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the children 
of the east lay along in the valley like grasshoppers for 
multitude, and their camels without number, as the sand 
by the sea-side for multitude”—slept,—Gideon, who had 
received a vision in a dream, arose, and dividing “the 
three hundred men into three companies, he put a trum¬ 
pet in every man’s hand, with empty pitchers, and lamps 
within the pitchers.” By-and-by, a cry rang through 
the startled air, “The sword of the Lord and of Gideon!” 

Then every man broke his pitcher and the light 
streamed forth, “and they stood every man in his place 
round about the camp, and all the host ran, and cried, 
and fled.” In the confusion every man’s hand was 
against his fellow in the vanquished camp, the dead and 
dying strewed the valley, while the remnant fled down 
the valley of the Jordan; and so the sword of the Lord 
and of Gideon prevailed. 

On this very ground where Gideon, “strong in the 
Lord, and in the power of his might,” had gathered his 
armies around him, close by the Fountain of Jezreel, 
Saul pitched his camp, while the Philistines were en¬ 
camped over there at Shunem; the armies were in full 
sight of each other, and between them lay the plain we 
were shortly to cross. “And when Saul saw the host of 
the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart greatly 
trembled.” In the midst of his camp he was alone. 
Samuel, on whose advice he could have relied, was dead; 
David, whose prowess helped him out of an apparently 
greater difficulty than the one before him, estranged. He 
had no one to whom he could go, he had by his sins 
estranged himself from God; yet he sought the Urim and 
Thummim, that ancient oracle, but it was dumb. “The 
Lord answered him not by dreams, nor by Urim, nor 


MOUNT GILBOA. 


165 


by prophets.” Suspense was unbearable; if he could 
not get an answer from heaven, could he from hell? In 
his distress and anxiety he bade a messenger go seek a 
woman that had a familiar spirit—the very class of im¬ 
posters his own decree, instigated by Samuel, had ban¬ 
ished from the land. 

The messenger returned, and told him of the Witch of 
Endor, and, under the cover of darkness, he set out, with 
two attendants, to consult her. It was a dangerous 
journey; but what was the outward peril compared with 
“the horror of great darkness” upon his soul? The road 
which Saul took can be unmistakably traced from here. 
He must have crossed the plain, gone round the left 
flank of the enemy, ascended the ridge of Little Hermon, 
and then have gone down a rather steep descent to 
Endor. There God answered him; there the Father of 
Spirits permitted his servant Samuel to speak with him 
from the dead; there the strong delusion which believed 
a lie was used by the Almighty as an instrument to his 
own ends; there the proud and reckless Saul, the godless 
Man yet God’s anointed, heard his death like a sound of 
a bell rung from the spirit world, and his doom pro¬ 
nounced: “To morrow shalt thou and thy sons be with 
Me: the Lord also shall deliver the host of Israel into 
the hands of the Philistines.” 

Back through the darkness to his camp, and at the 
breaking of the day to arms! The Philistines poured 
down the valley, the Israelites were forced up the hill- 
slopes of Gilboa. “And the battle went sore against 
Saul, and the archers hit him; and he was sore wounded 
of the archers.” Terrified with a great soul-terror, seek¬ 
ing death but finding it not, and dreading to be made the 
sport and mock of the Philistines if captured, he begged 
his armor-bearer to thrust him through. Even this last 
boon was denied. Fixing his sword into the blood- 


166 


SAMARIA TO NAZARETH. 


stained ground, with the energy of despair he fell upon 
it—and so perished the King of Israel.—(Hodder.) 

In Mr. Stanley’s book, this vivid passage occurs: “The 
Philistines instantly drove the Israelites up the slopes 
of Gilboa, and however widely the route may have car¬ 
ried the mass of the fugitives down the valley to the 
Jordan, the thick of the fight must have been on the 
heights themselves, for it was 'on Mount Gilboa’ that the 
wild Amalekite, wandering, like his modern country¬ 
men, over the upland waste 'chanced’ to see the dying 
king, and ‘on Mount Gilboa’ the corpses of Saul and his 
three sons were found by the Philistines the next day. 
So truly has David caught the peculiarity and position 
of the scene, which he had himself visited only a few 
days before the battle (1 Sam. 29.2). ‘The beauty of 
Israel is slain in the high places. * * * O Jonathan, 

thou wast slain in thine high places / as though the bitter¬ 
ness of death and defeat were aggravated by being not in 
the broad and hostile plain, but on their own familiar 
and friendly mountains. And with an equally striking 
touch of truth, as the image of that bare and bleak and 
jagged ridge rose before him, with its one green strip of 
table-land, where, probably, the last struggle was fought 
—the more bare and bleak from its unusual contrast 
with the fruitful plain from which it springs—he broke 
out into the pathetic strain: ‘Ye mountains of Gilboa, 
let there be no dew, neither let there be rain upon you, 
nor Helds of offerings: for there the shield of the mighty 
is vilely cast away, the shield of Saul, as though he had 
not been anointed with oil’” (2 Sam. 1.19-27). 

When the Philistines came to strip the slain on Mount 
Gilboa, after the fatal battle ,* “they found Saul and his 
three sons, fallen on Mount Gilboa, and they cut off his 
head and stripped off his armour, and sent unto the land 
of the Philistines round about to publish it in the house 


SHUNEM. 


167 


of their idols and among the people. And they put his 
armour in the house of Ashtaroth: and they fastened his 
body to the wall of Beth-shan” (1 Sam. 31.7-10). 

Leaving the Fountain of Jezreel, we make our way 
across the plain, which is very swampy, after recent 
rains, to the little village of Sulem, the Shunem of Scrip¬ 
ture, a town of Issachar. The village is a great contrast 
to many which we have seen in Palestine. It has a 
tidier and more well-to-do aspect. A short distance from 
the village, which is surrounded with a thick hedge of 
the prickly pear, there is an enchanting grove of orange, 
lemon, and citron trees, with pleasant grassy knolls, and 
a spring of delicious water. Hither the village maidens, 
bearing pitchers of water, generally follow the traveler, 
and there is no pleasanter spot in which to rest and be 
thankful. 

Shunem is where the Philistines had their encampment 
when they waged war with Saul (page 164). Another 
incident will be recalled with interest. Here the Shu- 
namite woman showed hospitality to the Prophet Elisha, 
and seeing that he was a holy man, she said to her hus¬ 
band, “Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the 
wall, and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a 
stool, and a candlestick, and it shall be when he cometh 
to us he shall turn in thither.” Her heart was made 
glad by a promise—which at first she did not believe 
would be fulfilled—but by and by her home was made 
glad by the music of a child’s voice. “And when the 
child was grown, it fell on a day that he went out to 
his father to the reapers. And he said unto his father, 
My head, my head. And he said to a lad, Carry him to 
his mother. And when he had taken him and brought 
him to his mother, he sat on her knees till noon, and then 
died. And she went up and laid him on the bed of the 
man of God, and went out,” Then swift as anxious love 


168 


SAMARIA TO NAZARETH. 


could bear her, she drove across the plain to tell her 
trouble to the man of God at Mount Carmel. Elisha 
returned with her, went up unto the room of death, “and 
he lay upon the child and put his mouth upon his mouth, 
and his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands, 
and he stretched himself upon the child; and the flesh 
of the child waxed warm” (2 Kings 4.8-37). 

Skirting the hill in a northeasterly direction, a journey 
of less than a hour brings the traveler to Nain. It is a 
shabby little village, with many rubbish-heaps and traces 
of ruins around; but it stands in a good situation beside 
the hill, and commands a fine view of the Galilean hills. 
Above the town are holes in the face of the hill, doubt¬ 
less rock tombs. The interest attaching to Nain cannot 
be told better than in the simple language of the Gospel 
narrative, which has made the spot memorable forever. 

“And it came to pass, the day after, that He went into 
a city called Nain; and many of His disciples went with 
Him, and much people. Now when He came nigh to the 
gate of the city, behold, there was a dead man carried 
out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow: 
and much people of the city was with her. And when 
the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her, and said 
unto her, Weep not. And He came and touched the 
bier; and they that bare him stood still. And He said, 
Young man, I say unto thee Arise. And he that was 
dead sat up, and began to speak. And He delivered him 
to his mother” (Luke 7.11-15). 

“What has Nineveh or Babylon been to the world in 
comparison with Nain? And this is the wonder con¬ 
stantly suggested by the insignificant villages of Pales¬ 
tine, that their names have become parts, as it were, of 
the deepest experiences of the noblest persons of every 
land and every age.”—(Mac Leod.) 


MOUNT TABOR. 


169 


From Nain to Endor is a ride of about fifty minutes. 

There is nothing to be seen at Endor (Arabic, Endur) 
—which was at one time a town of Manasseh, and, as 
late as the time of Eusebius, a large village—except the 
caves; and these are the principal objects of attraction 
It has been supposed that this place was the scene of the 
death of Jabin and Sisera. “Do unto them as unto the 
Midianites, as to Sisera as to Jabin, at the brook Kishon, 
which perished at Endor; they became as dung for the 
earth.” 

The Cave in which the Witch of Endor dwelt was 
pointed out to the traveler; hither came Saul the night 
before the fatal battle (page 165). He asked that who¬ 
soever he should name should be brought before him. 
“Then said the woman, Whom shall I bring up unto 
thee? And he said, Bring me up Samuel. And when 
the woman saw Samuel, she cried with a loud voice: and 
the woman spake to Saul, saying, Why hast thou de¬ 
ceived me? for thou art Saul. And the king said unto 
her, Be not afraid: for what sawest thou? And the 
woman said unto Saul, I saw gods ascending out of the 
earth. And he said unto her, What form is he of? And 
she said, An old man cometh up; and he is covered with 
a mantle. And Saul perceived that it was Samuel, and 
he stooped with his face to the ground, and bowed him¬ 
self” (1 Sam. 28.11-14). Then followed the prophecy of 
Samuel, declaring his death on the morrow, on hearing 
which the terrified and conscience-stricken man swooned 
away. 

Leaving Shunem, we descend into the plain, and have 
before us Mount Tabor. It is a beautiful hill, somewhat 
in the shape of a sugar-loaf, flattened at the top; it stands 
alone on the plain, except where a narrow, and in some 
places imperceptible ridge unites it to the hills of Gali¬ 
lee; its height from the plain is about 1,350 feet, and 


170 


SAMARIA TO NAZARETH. 


from the sea level over 2,000 feet. The history of Mount 
Tabor may be briefly summarized. It was here that 
Deborah commanded Barak to gather his army, “So 
Barak went down from Mount Tabor, and ten thousand 
men after him. And the Lord discomfited Sisera, and 
all his chariots, and all his host, with the edge of the 
sword before Barak” (Judges 4.14,15). 

Tabor is referred to in the wars of Gideon (Judges 
8.18,19), and in the Psalms and elsewhere it is men¬ 
tioned in poetical and figurative allusions. “The north 
and the south Thou hast created them: Tabor and Her- 
mon shall rejoice in Thy name” (Psalm 89.12). The 
Prophet Jeremiah, when telling how Nebuchadnezzar, 
king of Babylon, should come and smite the land of 
Egypt, utters these words: “As I live, saith the King, 
whose name is the Lord of hosts, surely as Tabor is 
among the mountains, and as Carmel by the sea, so shall 
He come” (Jer. 46.18, see also Hosea 5.1). The moun¬ 
tain is not referred to by name in the New Testament; 
but tradition was universally believed for many cen¬ 
turies, that this was none other than the Holy Mount, 
the scene of our Lord’s Transfiguration. 

As we approach the high hill on which Nazareth 
stands, we notice the village of Iksal, supposed to be 
Chisloth-Tabor (flank of Tabor), on the boundary of 
Zebulun (Joshua 19.12). Where the rocks are barren 
and precipitous, a worthless tradition has given the name 
Mount of Precipitation, alleging that it was from here 
the people of Nazareth sought to cast the Saviour down 
headlong. Now commences a sharp ascent, through 
glens and gullies, over steep and rugged places, where 
the well-tried Syrian horses pick their way with mar¬ 
velous sagacity, and at length the town of Nazareth is 
seen, and we enter it in about twenty minutes after 
sighting it. 


























































































NAZARETH. 















Nazareth 


Nazareth is not named in the Old Testament. Its his¬ 
tory dates from the time of Christ, and after that time 
until that of Constantine, it appears to have attracted 
little, if any, attention. 

The derivation of the name Nazareth is exceedingly 
doubtful. Some have affirmed that it is taken from a 
Hebrew word Nasar —a twig. In the time of our 
Lord, the name of Nazarene was used as a term of con¬ 
tempt, and to this day the boys in Nabulus and other 
towns of Palestine still greet the Christian traveler 
with cries of Nozrani! (Nazarene!) The modern name 
of the town is En-Nasirah. 

Since the events which rendered Nazareth famous 
occurred (page 173), the town has gone through a variety 
of vicissitudes. Until the time of Constantine its inhab¬ 
itants were Samaritan Jews; then it passed into the 
hands of Greek, Frank and Arab. The Crusaders built 
churches here, which the Turks in later years plundered 
and destroyed. Christians of different sorts endeavored 
to establish themselves here, but were never positively 
successful until about the eighteenth century. Among 
the remarkable things in the modern history of Nazareth 
are the circumstances that Napoleon supped here on 
the night of the Battle of Tabor, and that a plot was 
laid here by Pasha Jezzar to murder all the Christians 
in his dominions as soon as the French had evacuated; 


171 


172 


NAZARETH. 


his bloodthirsty scheme, however, was thwarted by Sir 
Sydney Smith, the English admiral. 

It is very difficult to arrive at a correct estimate of the 
population of any place under Turkish rule. Roughly 
there are about five to six thousand inhabitants in Naz¬ 
areth. Of these, certainly more than half belong to the 
orthodox Greek Church, then follow United Greeks, 
Catholics, Protestants, Maronites, and various other 
Christian communities, making up four-fifths of the pop¬ 
ulation, the rest being Moslems. 

Nazareth is still, as probably it was at the time of the 
angel’s visit, a large village or small town, situated upon 
the slope of one of the hills which enclose a hollow or 
valley. This vale, which is about a mile long by half a 
mile broad, resembles a circular basin shut in by moun¬ 
tains. It is a pleasant spot, and one might almost think 
that the fifteen mountains which enclose it had risen 
around to guard it from intrusion. It is a rich and beau¬ 
tiful field in the midst of barren mountains, abounding 
in fig trees, and showing many small gardens with hedges 
of the prickly pear, while the rich, dense grass affords 
an abundant and refreshing pasture. The town stands 
at the left, or western, end of the vale, and commands 
a view over the whole of its beautiful extent.- The town 
itself, as beheld from the valley or from the enclosing 
hill, is very picturesque, backed as it is by high cliffs 
and approached from under the shade of spreading 
oaks ,* with substantial-looking houses of stone, the 
square, massive walls of the church and monastery, and 
the graceful minarets of two mosques, interspersed with, 
and here and there overtopped by the tall, spiral forms 
of the dark green cypress tree.—(Dr. Kitto.) 

The people are celebrated for their kindness and cour¬ 
teousness. They are a better class of people altogether 
than is to be met with in any town in Palestine; their 


CHURCH OF THE ANNUNCIATION. 173 


dwellings are cleaner and their habits altogether different 
from those met with elsewhere. 

Nazareth was the residence of Joseph and Mary, and 
the scene of the Annunciation. “The angel Gabriel was 
sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, 
to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph” 
(Luke 1.26,27). From here Joseph went up to Beth¬ 
lehem, “to be taxed with Mary his espoused wife” (2.4). 
After the return from Egypt, this was the home of our 
Lord until He entered upon His public ministry, “that 
it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, 
He shall be called a Nazarene” (Matt. 2.23). When en¬ 
tering upon His public ministry, “Jesus came from Naza¬ 
reth of Galilee, and was baptized of John in Jordan” 
(Matt. 3.13). Afterwards, “He came to Nazareth where 
He had been brought up” (Luke 4.16). And then His 
fellow townsfolk sought to kill Him. They “rose up, and 
thrust Him out of the city, and led Him unto the brow 
of the hill whereon their city was built, that they might 
cast Him down headlong. But He passing through the 
midst of them went His way, and came down to Caper¬ 
naum” (4.29-31). Henceforth Capernaum was His own 
city and it does not appear that He ever again visited 
the scene of His boyhood and early manhood, although 
He must have seen it in the distance, as He passed by 
on His journey to Jerusalem. 

The Catholic Convent is one of the most interesting 
places in Nazareth; it is enclosed within high walls, and 
contains the Church of the Annunciation. The high altar 
is dedicated to the angel Gabriel, and is approached by 
marble steps on either side. Several fairly good pictures 
adorn the church, which has also a good organ. Below 
the altar is the crypt, from which one descends by a broad 
flight of fifteen marble steps, leading into the Chapel of 
the Angels, and this again leads by two steps into the 


174 


NAZARETH. 


Chapel of the Annunciation. “Where the angel told her 
that she should have a Son called Jesus.” Here a mar¬ 
ble altar stands with an inscription, 


“Hicverbum caro factum est” 
(“Here the Word was made flesh”) 


On the right and left are columns, marking the places 
where the angel and Mary stood; the latter is only a 
broken column, and tradition says it was thus destroyed 
by enemies who sought to destroy the church, and were 
miraculously prevented. 

A doorway leads from this chapel into the Chapel of 
Joseph, and from this is a stairway leading into the 
Kitchen of the Virgin—a mere cave, the mouth of which 
is pointed out as being the chimney. 

It will be remembered that the Holy House of Naza¬ 
reth is not really here, but at Loreto, in Italy. It is 
stated that when the basilica erected by the pious care 
of the Empress Helena over the Virgin’s house at Naza¬ 
reth fell into decay, the Casa Santa, or Holy House, was 
brought (by angels) to a spot between Fiume and Ter- 
sato, on the coast of Dalmatia, where it rested three 
years. Thence it was again carried off by angels in the 
night to the ground of a certain widow Laureta (whence 
Loreto). A church was erected there, and round it a 
village soon gathered, to which Pope Sixtus V. accorded 
the privileges of a town. Half a million pilgrims resort 
there annually; in fact, it is one of the most frequented 
sanctuaries of Christendom. 


FOUNTAIN OF THE VIRGIN. 


175 


The Workshop of Joseph is in the possession of the 
Catholics. Only a small portion of the wall is claimed 
to be the original workshop. 

The Table of Christ, where, it is said, He met with 
His disciples, and dined both before and after the resur¬ 
rection, was pointed out, and also the Synagogue, in the 
possession of the United Greeks, where He is said to 
have taught (page 173). 

To the minds of most, there are two places in Naza¬ 
reth sacred with the holiest associations. The first is 
the Fountain of the Virgin; and the second, the Wely 
at the top of the hill behind Nazareth. 

The Fountain of the Virgin is a plentiful spring of 
water issuing from three mouths. Above it, the Ortho¬ 
dox Greeks have their own special Church of the An¬ 
nunciation. The scene at the fountain is always interest¬ 
ing, and especially so in the evening, when it is thor¬ 
oughly Eastern. Here the village maidens, in their white 
robes and bright head-dresses, assemble, and bear away 
well-filled pitchers on their heads. There can be no rea¬ 
sonable doubt that she who was “blessed among women” 
would often come here, perhaps carrying the infant Sa¬ 
viour in just the same fashion as we saw modern moth¬ 
ers of Nazareth carrying their children; and no doubt 
many a time our Saviour, as He came past here on His 
way home from rambling on the hills, would tarry to 
quench His thirst at this very stream whose waters the 
traveler may drink today as a cup of blessing. 

The Wely Sim’an, on the top of the high hill behind 
Nazareth, commands one of the best views in the coun¬ 
try, and comprehends nearly all Palestine. “At a glance 
you seem to take in the whole land, and the first thought 
that strikes you is that this must have been a favorite 
resort of the Saviour, and if so, He must have had con¬ 
stantly spread before Him the great library of Biblical 


176 


NAZARETH. 


story.” On the north of Hermon; on the south, the 
mountains round about Jerusalem; on the east, the 
mountains of Gilead; on the other side Jordan; and on 
the west, the great sea (Mediterranean). Looking across 
to the west, we were able to make out the beautiful Bay 
of Acre; the ridge running out into the sea is Mount Car¬ 
mel, crowned with its convent. Southward are the 
mountains of Samaria; southeast, the hills around Jenin; 
eastward, the mountains of Gilead; and between them 
and us lies the magnificent Plain of Esdraelon, covered 
with its rich green carpet, and threaded with the silver 
line of “that ancient river, the river Kishon.” North¬ 
ward the view culminates in glory, as Hermon, -like a 
great wall of white crystal, stands out against the blue 
sky, with the Galilean hills below it, and everywhere 
round that region; scenery varied and picturesque. 

The details of this picture I greatly appreciated, and 
could distinguish those places I had recently visited, 
Jenin, Jezreel, Gilboa, Little Hermon, Nain, Tabor, and, 
just below my feet, the picturesque town of Nazareth, 
rich in gardens and flowers, and fruitful fields and plen¬ 
teous orchards. 

There is in Nazareth a good field for Christian work, 
and there are one or two places which will perhaps be 
visited with pleasure. The Protestant Church is a hand¬ 
some building, standing in a very commanding position; 
it is capable of holding about five hundred people, and 
the clergyman is a man full of benevolence, and has won 
his way to hearts of many of the people. He labors 
under the arrangements of the Church Missionary So¬ 
ciety. 

The Girls’ Orphanage in Nazareth, established by the 
Society for Promoting Female Education in the East, is 
in a flourishing state, and if every traveler would with- 


NAZARETH TO TIBERIAS. 


177 


hold a little undeserved backsheesh, and give it to this 
deserving institution, he would be helping on a good 
cause. 


From Nazareth to Tiberias 

The first village we passed was Reineh, without any 
historical association (so far as is known), and nothing 
to attract attention save an old sarcophagus, richly orna¬ 
mented, which stands by the roadside, and is used as the 
common water-trough of the village. A little further 
on we saw, on the top of a hill, the village of Meshhad, 
supposed to correspond with Gath-hepher, a town on the 
border of Zebulun, and the birthplace of the Prophet 
“Jonah, the son of Amittai, the prophet, which was of 
Gath-hepher” (2 Kings 14.25). Tradition locates the 
tomb of Jonah here, and his shrine is the Wely on the 
hill. 

Kefr Kenna, an insignificant village with about 500 in¬ 
habitants, was for centuries considered to be the Cana 
of Galilee where Christ performed His first miracle, at 
the Marriage Feast (John 2.1); where He healed the 
nobleman’s son, who lay sick at Capernaum (4.46-54) ; 
and where Nathaniel “the disciple in whom there was 
no guile,” was born (21.2). There is a Greek church in 
the latter village, where, of course, one of the actual 
waterpots used at the Marriage Feast was pointed out. 

After passing Kefr Kenna, we enter a really beautiful 
plain, and pass two or three villages which have no asso¬ 
ciations of interest attaching to them, and then reach 
Lubieh, where there are a few ruins and rock tombs in 
the hill slopes. 


178 


NAZARETH TO TIBERIAS. 


We have now on our left, rising up out of a fruitful 
plain, a curiously-shaped hill, having on its summit two 
peaks or horns, from which it derives its name of Kurun 
Hattin, or Horns of Hattin, where Christ preached the 
Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5.6,7). In the time of the 
Crusaders this place first came into notice as a holy place, 
the Latins having decided that it was the Mount of Bea¬ 
titudes, where our Lord preached the Sermon on the 
Mount. Another tradition makes this also the scene of 
the Feeding of the Five Thousand (Matt. 14.15-21). 

“And there followed Him great multitudes of people 
from Galilee, and from Decapolis, and from Jerusalem, and 
from Judaea, and from beyond Jordan.” (Compare Matt. 
4.25,5.1 with Luke 6.17-20.) 

“And when it was evening, His disciples came to Him, 
saying, This is a desert place, and the time is now past; 
send the multitude away, that they may go into the vil¬ 
lages, and buy themselves victuals. But Jesus said unto 
them, They need not depart; give ye them to eat. And 
they say unto Him, We have here but five loaves, and two 
fishes. He said, Bring them hither to Me. And He com¬ 
manded the multitude to sit down on the grass, and took 
the five loaves, and the two fishes, and looking up to 
heaven, He blessed, and brake, and gave the loaves to His 
disciples, and the disciples to the multitude. And they did 
all eat, and were filled: and they took up of the frag¬ 
ments that remained twelve baskets full.” 

Near here Saladin, in July, 1187, defeated the Cru¬ 
saders. It was their last struggle. At nightfall they 
gathered together by the Horns of Hattin; Guy of Lu- 
signan, with Raynald of Chatillon, the Grandmaster of 
the Knights Templars, and the Bishop of Lydda, bearing 
the Holy Cross. That day, however, was the triumph of 
the Moslem, and the power of the Crusaders in the Holy 
Land was broken forever. King Guy was taken pris- 


NAZARETH TO TIBERIAS. 


179 


oner; Chatillon, to whom Saladin owed many a bitter 
grudge, was slain; and all the mighty army of noble 
knights, whose deeds of valor have a charm for all, and 
have been faithfully chronicled by Michaud, were slain 
or taken prisoners. 

Proceeding towards Tiberias, we enter upon a ridge 
of hills, beautifully level, and soon come to a spot 
where a magnificent view is obtained of the sea of Galilee 
and its surroundings. This view has been described by 
everyone who has visited the Holy Land with great 
praise. 

In the foreground are the steeply sloping and well 
clothed banks leading down to the lake, which lies as 
in a basin a thousand feet or more below. The whole 
of the lake, from Tiberias on the right, away to Caper¬ 
naum on the left, is distinctly seen. Across the lake, 
rise the irregular hills, sloping down more or less pre¬ 
cipitously to the water’s edge; they are bare and barren, 
it is true, but rich and varied in tone and tint. 
Behind them are the mountains of Galilee, and away to 
the north Hermon rises, and, always grand, seems 
from here more magnificent than ever. Thus the view 
consists of verdant slopes, a deep blue lake of consider¬ 
able extent, with hills rising from it. It is impossible, 
however, to separate from these matter-of-fact details 
the spirit and inspiration of the scene; for yonder was 
the dwelling-place of Christ. Upon those waters He 
trod; those waves listened to His voice, and obeyed; 
over there, on the left, He preached the Sermon on the 
Mount; from one of those plateaus above the rugged 
hills the swine fell into the lake. Every place the eye 
rests upon is holy ground, for it is associated with some 
most sacred scenes in the life of the Master; every¬ 
where the Gospel is written upon this divinely illumi- 


180 


TIBERIAS. 


nated page of Nature, and the very air seems full of the 
echo of His words. 

The descent to Tiberias is very steep, and we were 
struck with the change in temperature, reminding us of 
the descent into the Valley of the Jordan. The views 
are interesting, especially as the old walled town of 
Tiberias makes a picturesque foreground to the scenery 
of the lake. 


Tiberias 

Tiberias is not mentioned in the New Testament, and 
there is no reason to believe that it was ever visited by 
our Lord. The only reference to it is in one or two 
verses speaking of the “Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea 
of Tiberias” (John 6.1,21.1). It was built by Herod An- 
tipas, A. D. 20, and was dedicated by him to the Em¬ 
peror Tiberias. It is doubtful whether there ever was 
an older city on this site. It soon became the chief city 
of the province of Galilee; many handsome buildings 
adorned it, amongst them a royal palace and an amphi¬ 
theater. After the destruction of Jerusalem it became 
the seat of the Jews. In the second century the Sanhe¬ 
drim was removed here from Sepphoris, and for a long 
time it was noted for its Rabbinical School. Here the 
Mishna and Masorah, the principal traditional works of 
the Jews, were published. Its subsequent history is 
merely that of captures by Persians, Arabs, and Cru¬ 
saders. 

The modern town of Tiberias does not occupy so large 
a space as the ancient; it is partially surrounded by a 
wall, which was shaken and nearly destroyed in the great 



TIBERIAS AND THE SEA OF GALILEE 














TIBERIAS. 


181 


earthquake of 1837, when half the people of the town 
perished. It abounds with fleas, and has become a 
proverb in this respect. The population is over three 
thousand, nearly two thousand of whom are Jews. They 
are easily recognized; many of them wear immense 
black hats, many wear their hair in ringlets, and nearly 
all look pale and effeminate. Like the Jews in Jeru¬ 
salem, they for the most part live on charity. They be¬ 
long to two sects, the Ashkenazim and the Sephardim; 
the former have five synagogues, and the latter two. 

The Catholic Church, or Monastery, close by the lake 
dates from the time of the Crusades, and was rebuilt in 
1869. 

The Jews’ Burial Ground is a spot universally sacred 
to Jews, as here are buried the most celebrated of their 
modern men, including Jochanan, and the celebrated 
philosopher Maimonides, whose learning and abilities 
have been freely acknowledged, both by Jews and Chris¬ 
tians. He died in Egypt on the 13th of December, 1204, 
having founded a College at Alexandria for the instruc¬ 
tion of his countrymen, in which he delivered lectures 
on philosophy and the Jewish law. 

The Hot Baths are about half an hour’s walk to the 
south of the town; they are supposed to be an infallible 
cure for rheumatism, though I had not the courage 
to bathe in so filthy a place. The temperature of 
the principal spring is 131°-142° Fahrenheit. The old 
castle, situated on the south side of the town, is inter¬ 
esting for the sake of its view. The Catholic Convent 
is on the sea-shore, a short distance from the Jews’ 
Quarter. Here travelers not provided with tents can obtain 
accommodation. 

The most celebrated Christian tradition is, that the 
miraculous draught of fishes took place in the lake, close 
by where the Catholic Monastery stands( see above). 


Sea of Galilee 

The scenery of the Lake of Galilee has been described 
so often that it needs no description here. It should be 
seen at sunrise or sunset, when the brown hills are bril¬ 
liant with color; at eventide, when the shadows deepen 
in the water; or, best of all, by moonlight, when all that 
is monotonous in tone is softened, and all inequalities 
and barrenness are harmonized. 

“The lake is pear-shaped, the broad end being towards 
the north; the greatest width is six and three-quarter 
miles from Mejdel—‘Magdala’—to Khersa—‘Gergesa’— 
about one-third of the way down; and the extreme 
length is twelve and a quarter miles. The Jordan enters 
at the north, a swift, muddy stream, coloring the lake 
a good mile from its mouth, and passes out pure and 
bright at the south. On the northwestern shore of the 
lake is a plain, two and a half miles long and one mile 
broad, called by the Bedouins El-Ghuweir, but better 
known by its familiar name of Gennesareth; and on the 
northeast, near Jordan’s mouth, is a swampy plain, El 
Batihah, now much frequented by wild boars—formerly 
the scene of a skirmish between the Jews and Romans, 
in which Josephus met with an accident that necessitated 
his removal to Capernaum. * * * On the south, the 

fine open Valley of the Jordan stretches away towards the 
Dead Sea, and is covered in the neighborhood of the lake 
with luxuriant grass.”—(Capt. Wilson, “Recovery of 
Jerusalem.”) 


182 


LAND OF GENNESARET. 


183 


The Lake of Galilee is from 600 to 700 feet below the 
Mediterranean. The water is bright, and good for drink¬ 
ing purposes. It is still subject to violent storms as in 
the days of the Gospels, and Captain Wilson has well 
described a storm he witnessed, which singularly well 
illustrates the Gospel narrative. 

Boats on the Lake.—With the greatest interest for the 
associations of this sacred sea, we had, as the sea was 
calm, an enjoyable sail upon the lake from Tiberias to 
Capernaum. 


From Tiberias to Tell-Hum 

Almost opposite Tiberias are Wady Fik and the ruins 
of Gamala, where once stood a fortress, garrisoned by 
Josephus, and taken in A. D. 69 by Vespasian with a loss 
of ten thousand, half of whom leaped from the walls 
down the precipices. On the left are some springs, 
known as ’Ain-el-Barideh, then on the left again is seen 
the village of Mejdel, corresponding with Magdala, 
where Mary Magdalene was born. It is a worthless 
village now, with only twenty huts. Below is a small 
plain, and with this the traveler will associate the pas¬ 
sage in Matt. 15.39, where, after recording the miracle of 
the loaves and fishes, it is said Jesus “sent away the mul¬ 
titude, and took ship and came into the coast of Mag¬ 
dala.” Probably a village named Dalmanutha adjoined 
Magdala, as in the corresponding passage in Mark 8.10, 
it says: “Straightway He entered into a ship with His dis¬ 
ciples, and came into the parts (? ports) of Dalmanutha.” 

The level tract beyond Magdala is the Land of Gen- 
nesaret (Matt. 14.34), now called El Ghuweir, or “the 


184 


SEA OF GALILEE. 


Little Ghor.” The meaning of the name is supposed to 
have been either Valley of the Flowers, or Gardens of the 
Prince. It is about three miles long, and its greatest 
breadth is one mile. The soil of the whole tract is ex¬ 
tremely fruitful, and although the greater part is over¬ 
run with rank weeds, the cultivated parts supply the 
markets of Damascus and Beyrout with the best melons 
and cucumbers grown in Palestine. It will be remem¬ 
bered that Josephus gives a most glowing description 
of the Land of Gennesaret, and as the passage occurs so 
often in the controversy which has been going on for 
the past few years as to the identity of the site of Caper¬ 
naum, it will be well to quote it here: 

“One may call this place the ‘ambition of nature,’ when 
it forces those plants that are naturally enemies to one 
another, to agree together. It is a happy contention of 
the seasons, as if every one of them had a claim in this 
country; for it not only nourishes different sorts of au¬ 
tumnal fruits beyond men’s expectations, but preserves 
them also a great while. It supplies men with the prin¬ 
cipal fruits—with grapes and figs continually during ten 
months of the year, and the rest of the fruits as they 
become ripe together through the whole year; for besides 
the good temperature of the air, it is also watered from 
a most fertile fountain. The people of the country call 
it Capharnaum.”—(Josephus iii., ch. 10.8.) 

All this region is sacred with associations connected 
with the ministry of our Lord; and it will be well, per¬ 
haps, to quote some of the principal Scripture passages 
relating to a place so memorable. 

Biblical Allusions and Events.—The Sea of Galilee is 
called in the Old Testament “the Sea of Chinnereth” 
(Numb. 34.11; Deut. 3.17), and the “Sea of Cinneroth” 
(Josh. 12.3), from a town which stood somewhere on its 
margin named Chinnereth (Josh. 19.35). In the New 


BIBLE EVENTS. 


185 


Testament it is called the “Sea of Tiberias” (John 6.1), 
from the town of that name; and the “Lake of Genne- 
sareth” (Luke 5.1), from the beautiful plain of Genne- 
saret. (The modern name is Bahr Tuberiyeh.) 

In this region, round about the shores of this sea, our 
Lord spent the principal part of His public life. Nine 
cities then stood upon its shores, of which the chief were 
Capernaum, Chorazin, Tiberias, Magdala, and the two 
Bethsaidas. To tell of all the mighty works performed 
here would be to transcribe a very considerable part of 
the four gospels. Every inch, too, is controversial 
ground, and therefore it will be better merely to give 
an epitome of the scenes which make hill and valley, and 
shore and sea so intensely sacred. 

Cast out from Nazareth, Capernaum (page 194) be¬ 
came henceforth the “home” of Jesus. It was “His own 
city”; “leaving Nazareth He came and dwelt in Caper¬ 
naum, which is upon the seacoast, in the borders of Zabu- 
lon and Nephthalim: that it might be fulfilled which was 
spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, The Land of Zabu 
Ion and the land of Nephthalim, by the way of the sea, 
beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles; the people which 
sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat 
in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up” 
(Matt. 4.13-16). From that time Jesus began to preach, 
and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at 
hand. Here He called Peter, James, and John, the three 
most intimate disciples, the “inner circle,” of His chosen 
band. “And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed 
upon Him to hear the word of God, He stood by the 
lake of Gennesaret, and saw two ships standing by the 
lake: but the fishermen were gone out of them, and were 
washing their nets” (Luke 5.1). Then He entered into 
Simon’s ship, and taught the people on the shore, and 
after that He performed the miracle of the draught of 


186 


SEA OF GALILEE. 


fishes, which so astonishing Peter, Janies, and John, the 
Master said to them, “Fear not; from henceforth thou 
shalt catch men. And when they had brought their 
ships to shore, they forsook all, and followed Him.” 

From a ship on the waters of this lake, He delivered 
that marvelous discourse on the kingdom of heaven. 
Jesus “went out of His house (‘His own house’) and sat 
by the seaside. And great multitudes were gathered 
unto Him, so that He went into a ship and sat; and the 
whole multitude stood on the shore” (Matt. 13.1,2), and 
heard those wonderful parables of the sower, the wheat 
and the tares, the grain of mustard-seed, the leaven, and 
the net cast into the sea. 

Here when “there arose a great tempest in the sea, 
insomuch that the ship was covered with waves * * * He 
rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great 
calm. But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of 
man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him! 
And when He was come to the other side into the country 
of the Gergesenes, there met Him two possessed with devils, 
coming out of the tombs, exceeding fierce, so that no man 
might pass by that way. And behold, they cried out, saying, 
What have we to do with Thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? 
art Thou come hither to torment us before the time? And 
there was a good way off from them an herd of many 
swine feeding. So the devils besought Him saying, If Thou 
cast us out, suffer us to go away into the herd of swine. 
And He said unto them, Go. And when they were come 
out, they went into the herd of swine: and, behold, the 
whole herd of swine ran violently down a steep place into 
the sea, and perished in the waters” (Matt. 8.28-34). Near 
here He fed the five thousand (page 178), and afterwards 
seeing His disciples toiling in rowing on the lake, for the 
wind was contrary, “Jesus went unto them, walking on the 
sea” (Matt. 14,25). “And in the fourth watch of the 


BIBLE EVENTS. 


187 


night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea. And when 
the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were 
troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for 
fear. But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, 
Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid. And Peter 
answered Him and said, Lord, if it be Thou, bid me come 
unto Thee on the water. And He said, Come. And 
when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked 
on the water, to go to Jesus. But when he saw the wind 
boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, 
saying, Lord, save me. And immediately Jesus stretched 
forth His hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O 
thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt ?” 

When the collectors of tribute came to Him at Caper¬ 
naum, our Lord, in the exhibition of His perfect and 
complete humanity, linked Himself with His disciples 
in one of His most touching utterances. Having elicited 
from Peter that the tribute should be taken from strang¬ 
ers, and that the children should go free, He added, “Not¬ 
withstanding, lest we should offend them, go thou to 
the sea, and cast a hook, and take up the fish that first 
cometh up; and when thou hast opened his mouth, thou 
shalt find a piece of money: that take, and give unto them 
for Me and thee }> (Matt. 17.27). 

Here He “performed many mighty works” and “spake 
many things,” and here was the scene of those touching 
incidents which occurred soon after His resurrection. 
One early morning, the disciples who were in their boat, 
after having toiled all the night and caught nothing, saw 
a dim figure standing “on the shore”—probably the 
beach of the plain of Gennesaret. A voice, strangely fa¬ 
miliar, yet unrealized, came to them, “Children, have ye 
any meat?” And when they replied “No,” and the first 
miracle on their entry to the discipleship was. repeated, 
then “that disciple whom Jesus loved” first, with the 


188 


SEA OF GALILEE. 


quick instinct of love, said, “It is the Lord;” while Peter, 
first with the impetuosity of a love of service, cast him¬ 
self into the sea, and swam to Him. And there on the 
shore, where the mysterious fire of coals burned, and 
the farewell meal was spread, the Lord bade them dine. 
And there the disciple who, three times warned, had 
thrice denied his Lord, by threefold confession was re¬ 
stored and reinstated in the apostolic office (John 21). 

These are but scanty specimens. Other events will be 
referred to under their proper heads, but the hints sug¬ 
gested in the preceding passages will give the traveler 
a clue to many a sacred thought and feeling. 

“This is a hallowed lake in the glorious Land of Prom¬ 
ise and Divine performance—the peaceful scene of the 
opening career of the Redeemer, the cradle of His teach¬ 
ing, the country of His disciples; His chosen retreat 
when He hid himself from His foes; His miracles and 
His sublime lessons have consecrated these solitudes. 
The charm of this landscape is felt still in our own day, 
and is reflected in the simple story of the Evangelists. 
We are carried back to the life on its shores by the par¬ 
able of the net, by that of the lost sheep, by the image of 
the sheep-fold, and the beautiful lesson of the lilies. 
These flowers, more glorious than Solomon’s purple, 
still abound * * *”—(Ritter Erdkunda.) 

And as He taught in Capernaum (Luke 7.36-50), “one 
of the Pharisees desired Him that He would eat with 
him. And He went into the Pharisee’s house, and sat 
down to meat. And, behold, a woman in the city, which 
was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at meat in the 
Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster box of ointment, 
and stood at His feet behind Him weeping, and began 
to wash His feet with tears, and did wipe them with the 
hairs of her head, and kissed His feet, and anointed them 
with the ointment. Now when the Pharisee which had 


BIBLE EVENTS. 


189 


bidden Him saw it, he spake within himself, saying, This 
man, if He were a prophet, would have known who and 
what manner of woman this is that toucheth Him: for 
she is a sinner. And Jesus answering said unto him, 
Simon, I have somewhat to say unto thee. And he saith, 
Master, say on. 

“There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: 
the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty. 
And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave 
them both. Tell Me therefore, which of them will love 
him most? Simon answered and said, I suppose that he, 
to whom he forgave most. And He said unto him, Thou 
hast rightly judged. And He turned to the woman, and 
said unto Simon, Seest thou this woman? I entered into 
thine house, thou gavest Me no water for My feet: but 
she hath washed My feet with tears, and wiped them with 
the hairs of her head. Thou gavest Me no kiss; but the 
woman since the time I came in hath not ceased to kiss 
My feet. My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but 
this woman hath anointed My feet with ointment: 
Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins which are many, 
are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is 
forgiven, the same loveth little. And He said unto her, 
Thy sins are forgiven. And they that sat at meat with Him 
began to say within themselves, Who is this that for- 
giveth sins also? And He said to the woman, Thy 
faith hath saved thee; go in peace.” 


Tell-Hum 


Tell-Hum is two miles west of the Jordan. It is a 
mass of ruins, in the early summer overgrown with tall, 
coarse thistles which hide them from view. 

The principal ruins are of those of the “White Syna¬ 
gogue,” as it has been called on account of its having 
been built of white limestone; it was 74 feet 9 inches 
long, by 56 feet 9 inches wide. Connected with this are 
the ruins of an older building, supposed to be the re¬ 
mains of a basilica enclosing the house of St. Peter, de¬ 
scribed by Antoninus A. D. 600. Captain Wilson says 
of the former of these buildings, “If Tell-Hum be Caper¬ 
naum, this is without a doubt the synagogue built by the 
Roman centurion, and one of the most sacred places on 
earth.” (Luke 7.3,4.5-10.) “And when he heard of Jesus, 
he sent unto Him the elders of the Jews, beseeching Him 
that He would come and heal His servant. And when 
they came to Jesus, they besought Him instantly, say¬ 
ing, That he was worthy for whom He should do this: 
For he loveth our nation, and he hath built us a syna¬ 
gogue. Then Jesus went with them. And when He was 
now not far from the house, the centurion sent friends 
to Him, saying unto Him, Lord, trouble not Thyself: for 
I am not worthy that Thou shouldest enter under my 
roof. Wherefore neither thought I myself worthy to 
come unto Thee: but say in a word, and my servant shall 
be healed. For I also am a man set under authority, 


190 


BIBLE EVENTS. 


191 


having under me soldiers, and I say unto one, Go, and 
he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to 
my servant, Do this, and he doeth it. When Jesus heard 
these things, He marveled at him, and turned Him about, 
and said unto the people that followed Him, I say unto 
you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. 
And they that were sent, returning to the house, found 
the servant whole that had been sick.” 

It was in this building that our Lord gave the well- 
known discourse in John 6, on the Bread of Life, verses 
25-71. “And when they had found Him on the other 
side of the sea, they said unto Him, Rabbi, when earnest 
Thou hither? Jesus answered them and said, Verily, 
verily, I say unto you, Ye seek Me, not because ye saw 
the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and 
were filled. Labour not for the meat which perisheth, 
but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, 
which the Son of Man shall give unto you: for Him hath 
God the Father sealed. Then said they unto Him, What 
shall we do, that we might work the works of God? 
Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of 
God, that ye believe on Him whom He hath sent. They 
said therefore unto Him, What sign shewest Thou then, 
that we may see, and believe Thee? what dost Thou work? 
Our fathers did eat manna in the desert; as it is written, 
He gave them bread from heaven to eat. Then Jesus 
said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses 
gave you not that bread from heaven; but My Father 
giveth you the true bread from heaven. For the bread 
of God is He which cometh down from heaven, and giv¬ 
eth life unto the world. Then said they unto Him, Lord, 
evermore give us this bread. And Jesus said unto them, 
I am the bread of life: he that cometh to Me shall never 
hunger; and he that believeth on Me shall never thirst. 
But I say unto you, That ye also have seen Me, and 


192 


TELL-HUM. 


believe not. All that the Father giveth Me shall come 
to Me; and him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast 
out. For I came down from heaven, not to do Mine 
own will, but the will of Him that sent Me. And this 
is the Father’s will which hath sent Me, that of all which 
He hath given Me, I should lose nothing, but should raise 
it up again at the last day. And this is the will of Him 
that sent Me, that every one which seeth the Son, and 
believeth on Him, may have everlasting life: and I will 
raise him up at the last day. The Jews then murmured 
at Him, because He said, I am the bread which came down 
from heaven. And they said, Is not this Jesus, the son 
of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? how is it 
then that He saith, I came down from heaven? Jesus 
therefore answered and said unto them, Murmur not 
among yourselves. No man can come to Me, except the 
Father which hath sent Me draw him: and I will raise 
him up at the last day. It is written in the prophets, 
And they shall be all taught of God. Every man there¬ 
fore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, 
cometh unto Me. Not that any man hath seen the 
Father, save He which is of God, He hath seen the 
Father. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth 
on Me hath everlasting life. I am that bread of life. 
Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are 
dead. This is the bread which cometh down from 
heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. I am 
the living bread which came down from heaven: if any 
man eat of this bread, he shall live forever: and the bread 
that I will give is My flesh, which I will give for the life 
of the world. The Jews therefore strove among them¬ 
selves, saying, How can this man give us His flesh to 
eat? Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say 
unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of Man, and 
drink His blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth 


BIBLE EVENTS. 


193 


My flesh, and drinketh My blood, hath eternal life; and 
I will raise him up at the last day. For My flesh is meat 
indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. He that eateth 
My flesh, and drinketh My blood, dwelleth in Me, and 
I in him. As the living Father hath sent Me, and I live 
by the Father: so he that eateth Me, even he shall live 
by Me. This is that bread which came down from 
heaven: pot as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: 
he that eateth of this bread shall live forever. These 
things said He in the synagogue, as He taught in Caper¬ 
naum. Many therefore of His disciples, when they had 
heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it? 
When Jesus knew in Himself that His disciples mur¬ 
mured at it, He said unto them, Doth this offend you? 
What and if ye shall see the Son of Man ascend up where 
He was before? It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh 
profiteth nothing; the words that I speak unto you, they 
are spirit, and they are life. But there are some of you 
that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning 
who they were that believed not, and who should be¬ 
tray Him. And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that 
no man can come unto Me, except it were given unto him 
of My Father. From that time many of His disciples 
went back, and walked no more with Him. Then said 
Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away? Then 
Simon Peter answered Him, Lord, to whom shall we go? 
Thou hast the words of eternal life. And we believe and 
are sure that Thou art that Christ, the Son of the living 
God. Jesus answered them, Have not I chosen you 
twelve, and one of you is a devil. He spake of Judas 
Iscariot, the son of Simon: for he it was that should be¬ 
tray Him, being one of the twelve.” 

“ ‘These things said He in the synagogue, as He taught 
in Capernaum’ (John 6.59); and it was not without a 
certain strange feeling that on turning over a large block 


194 


TELL-HLJM. 


we found the pot of manna engraved on its face, and 
remembered the words, ‘I am that bread of life. Your 
fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead.’ ” 

“And it came to pass, the day after, that He went into 
a city called Nain; and many of His disciples went with 
Him, and much people. Now when He came nigh to the 
gate of the city, behold, there was a dead man carried 
out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow: 
and much people of the city was with her. And when 
the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her, and said 
unto her, Weep not. And He came and touched the 
bier: and they that bare him stood still. And He said, 
young man, I say unto thee, Arise. And he that was 
dead sat up, and began to speak. And He delivered him 
to his mother. And there came a fear on all: and they 
glorified God, saying, That a great prophet is risen up 
among us; and, That God hath visited his people. And 
this rumor of Him went forth throughout all Judaea, and 
throughout all the region round about.” 

“And it came to pass afterward that He went through¬ 
out every city and village, preaching and shewing the 
glad tidings of the Kingdom of God: and the twelve 
were with Him. And certain women, which had been 
healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Mag¬ 
dalene, out of whom went seven devils, and Joanna, the 
wife of Chuza Herod’s steward, and Susanna, and many 
others, which ministered unto Him of their substance.” 

On rising ground at the back of these ruins (those of 
the “White Synagogue”) are the remains of the ancient 
town of Capernaum, where our Lord had His own house. 
These ruins occupy a space half a mile long by a quar¬ 
ter of a mile broad. It has been supposed that a main 
street can be traced, leading to Chorazin. 

It is pleasant for the traveler who has been wearied 
with the holy places in all kinds of improbable grottoes 


BIBLE EVENTS. 


195 


and churches, to feel that here he can, without interrup¬ 
tion or annoyance, tread in the very footprints of the 
Master. 

All travelers have expressed themselves rapturously 
about this, and certainly there is no place where moon¬ 
light effects can be witnessed with greater pleasure. 

“Never will the night that closed that delightful day 
in the environs of ‘His own city’ be forgotten by me,” 
says a recent writer. “It was brilliantly moonlight, and 
standing upon the cliff above our camping-place, the 
white houses of Tiberias were distinctly visible; the 
waters of the lake lay calm and placid as when He said, 
‘Peace, be still, and there was a great calm’; around us 
were the ‘desert places’ and the ‘mountain tops’ which 
had been the scene of His resting and His prayers. Caper¬ 
naum, Bethsaida, Chorazin—mounds of rubbish, tangles 
of thistles, heaps of ruins—these have been cast down, 
and have passed away; but the ‘mighty works’ remain, 
still powerful in blessing; and the ‘gracious words’ are as 
fresh, as beautiful, and as life-giving to-day as when He 
uttered them.” 

No traveler will leave these memorable sites without 
recalling those touching words of our Lord: 

“Then began He to upbraid the cities wherein most of 
His mighty works were done, because they repented 
not: Woe unto thee, Chorazin! Woe unto thee, Beth¬ 
saida ! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, 
had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have re¬ 
pented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say unto 
you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at 
the day of judgment than for you. And thou, Caper¬ 
naum, which art exalted unto heaven, shall be brought 
down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been 


196 


TIBERIAS TO BANIAS. 


done in thee, had been in Sodom, it would have re¬ 
mained until this day. But I say unto you, That it shall 
be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judg¬ 
ment, than for thee.”—(Matt. 11.20-24). 


Tiberias to Banias 

From Tiberias to Capernaum (page 190). 

Leaving ’Ain-et-Tin, or Tell-Hum, we proceed by a 
wretchedly bad road, which, nevertheless, was the old 
caravan road between Egypt and Damascus, until we 
reach a point where, looking back, we take our farewell 
peeps at the Lake of Gennesaret and its neighborhood, 
and looking forward see the unfolding glories of Her- 
mon and Lebanon. We pass the Khan Yubb Yusef, or 
Khan of Joseph’s Well, the traditional well into which 
the hero of the Bible story was thrown by his brethren; 
the Khan is modern and filthily dirty. 

On our way here we saw the Jewish farms, in the 
colony of Rothschild, which he had built just a few years 
ago. The town was built by Rothschild for the poor 
Jews from Russia, to make their home there and farm. 
The houses are all about the same height, and built of 
red brick. Near this town were seen the Jews with long 
beards and their long curls hanging down on either side 
of the face, and with their long coats, going behind the 
plows and cultivating the land. All things grow splen¬ 
didly here, as the soil is very rich. 

While here, we may also read up the following par¬ 
ticulars about the district of Huleh, in which ’Ain Mel- 
lahah is situated. In the Old Testament the Lake of 
Huleh—a triangular body of water four and a half miles 


FOUNTAIN OF THE JORDAN. 


197 


long, three and a half broad, eleven feet deep, and nearly 
three hundred feet above the sea level—is called Waters 
of Merom. It was here that Jabin, King of Hazor, gath¬ 
ered together all the surrounding kings and their com¬ 
panies, “and they went out, they and all their hosts with 
them, much people, even as the sand that is upon the 
seashore in multitude, with horses and chariots very 
many. And when all these kings were met together, they 
came and pitched together at the waters of Merom, to 
fight against Israel. And the Lord said unto Joshua, 
Be not afraid because of them: for to-morrow about this 
time will I deliver them up all slain before Israel: thou 
shalt hough their horses, and burn their chariots with 
fire. So Joshua came, and all the people of war with 
him, against them by the waters of Merom suddenly; 
and they fell upon them. And the Lord delivered them 
into the hand of Israel” (Joshua 11.4-8). 

A journey of about an hour from ’Ain Belat across the 
plain brings us to a spot of great interest—it is Tell-el- 
Kadi (the Hill of the Judge, or the Judge’s Mound) cor¬ 
responding with the Dan of Scripture and the Laish of 
the Phoenicians. The Tell, or mound, is about a quar¬ 
ter of a mile in diameter, and about fifty feet above the 
plain; beneath it bursts out a beautiful crystal spring, 
which sends forth its living stream through the plain; 
while from beneath a wide-spreading terebinth—which 
marks the site of a Moslem grave on the side of the 
mound—issue some sparkling rills, which add their con¬ 
tributions to the stream. The mound, with the further 
mound rising behind it, marks the site of the town and 
citadel of Dan, the northern frontier of the Holy Land; 
while the spring at its foot is the Fountain of the Jordan, 
one of the largest and most important springs of that 
sacred river. The history of Dan is briefly as follows: 
When Abraham pursued the captors of Lot, he “went 


198 


BANIAS. 


even unto Dan,” and with the few men of his household 
recovered him and the booty. It was the most northerly 
city of Palestine, as Beersheba was the most southerly; 
and the expression, “from Dan to Beersheba,” is known 
to all, both in its literal and metaphorical sense. It was 
used in the same way ages ago (see Judges 20.1; 1 Sam. 
3.20, etc.). 

The journey from Tell-el-Kadi, or Dan, to Banias, is 
short, but exceedingly beautiful, and has been thus ad¬ 
mirably described by Stanley: 

“With Dan, the Holy Land properly terminated. But 
the easternmost source of the Jordan, about four miles 
distant, is so intimately connected with it, both by his¬ 
torical and geographical association, that we must go 
forwards yet a little way into the bosom of Hermon. 
Over an unshaded carpet of turf—through trees of every 
variety of foliage—through a park-like verdure, which 
casts a strangely beautiful interest over this last recess 
of Palestine, the pathway winds, and the snowy top of 
the mountain itself is gradually shut out from view by 
its increasing nearness; and again there is a rush of 
waters through deep thickets, and the ruins of an ancient 
town—not Canaanite, but Roman—rise on the hillside; 
in its situation, in its exuberance of water, its olive 
groves, and its views over the distant plain, almost a 
Syrian Tivoli.” 


Banias or Caesarea Philippi 

[The usual camping-place is beside the stream flowing 
from the source of the Jordan. It is a picturesque spot, 
in a fine grove of olives, and green park-like grass, com- 


SOURCE OF THE JORDAN. 


199 


manding too some charming peeps across the ravine.] 

Banias was known as the Greek Paneas, from the 
sanctuary of Pan. It was adorned by Herod the Great, 
who erected a temple over the spring of the Jordan, in 
honor of Augustus Caesar. His son, Philip the Tet- 
rarch, enlarged the town, and called it Caesarea, in honor 
of Tiberias Caesar, and, as there was already a Caes¬ 
area on the Mediterranean, he added Philippi. By 
Agrippa II. it was named Neronias, but this name soon 
died out, and it became generally known as Caesarea 
Paneas, a name which is preserved in the modern name 
of Banias. 

Nothing is known of the very ancient history of this 
remarkable place, although Drs. Robinson and Schwarz 
agree that it corresponds with Baal-Gad, the northern 
boundary of Joshua’s victories. “J os liua took the land, 
even from the Mount of Halak that goeth up to Seir, 
even unto Baal-Gad in the valley of Lebanon under 
Mount Hermon” (Joshua 11.17, see also 12.7,13.5). 

Baal-Gad is probably identical with Baal-Hermon (Judges 
3.3; 1 Chron. 5.23). 

The situation of Banias is exceptionally beautiful, be¬ 
ing on the mountain slope, with ravines on either side, 
and everywhere sparkling streams of water and therefore 
luxuriant vegetation. The modern village has about fifty 
or sixty houses, and one or two shops. There is a rough 
bridge over the Jordan made of antique pillars minus 
the capitals; parts of the old citadel are still to be seen, 
and its massive walls and towers can be traced. 

Several picturesque views may be obtained among 
the ruins, especially from the bridge and the citadel. 
These will not attract the interest of the visitor, who 
will at once proceed to the spot where all the present 
interest in Banias centers. It is the fountain or Source 
of the Jordan, which bursts out in a series of many 


200 


BANIAS. 


streams, and, forming a large basin, flows hence in one 
copious stream. Behind it rises a precipitous red lime¬ 
stone cliff, in the face of which is a cave, or grotto, the 
Paneum, or Sanctuary of Pan, from which the town took 
its name. On the summit of the cliff Herod erected a 
white marble temple; now there is a wely in honour of 
St. George on the same spot. 

As we stand at the foot of the cave and look at that 
grotto, where, perchance, in early days Baal was wor¬ 
shipped, where, without doubt, the Greeks, who always 
associated caves and grottoes with the worship of Pan, 
paid their devotions to that deity, we recall with some 
emotion that scene recorded in Matt. 16.13, “When Jesus 
came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi: He asked His 
disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I, the Son of 
Man am? And they said, Some say that Thou art the 
John the Baptist; some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or 
one of the prophets. He saith unto them, But whom 
say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, 
Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And 
Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, 
Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed 
it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say 
also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock 
I will build My church; and the gates of hell shall not 
prevail against it.” 


Mount Hermon 

Hermon (“Lofty or Prominent Peak”) occupies a most 
commanding position, and is visible from Sarepta, Tyre, 
and even from the depths of the Jordan valley by the 


MOUNT HERMON. 


201 


Dead Sea. Its ancient names all describe this position. 
Sion (Deut. 4.48) (“the Upraised”), so named because 
it towers above the other mountains. Sirion (“the Glit¬ 
tering”) it was called by the Sidonians; Shenir (“the 
Clattering”) by the Amorites (Deut. 3.9). Both of these 
words, too, mean “Breastplate.” The mountain is now 
called Jebel-esh-Shiekh (“the Chief Mountain”)—also 
suggestive of its imposing appearance. Twice in Scrip¬ 
ture the name of Baal-Hermon is given to the mountain 
—no doubt the result of the worship of Baal in that 
“high place” (Judges 3.3; 1 Chron. 5.23). 

Mount Hermon has been called Mont Blanc of Pales¬ 
tine. It was the great landmark for the northern bor¬ 
der of the Israelites, and it rises about ten thousand 
feet above the level of the sea. There are three sepa¬ 
rate heights which form the summit, and they rise two 
or three thousand feet above the main chain. The views 
from the summit are, of course, very extensive and 
deeply interesting. That from the greatest height takes 
in Buka’a, and the ranges of Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon. 
The great eastern plain is well stretched out before the 
second or southern height; and from the third or west¬ 
ern peak a great part of Syria is seen. Far away to the 
south are the mountains of ’Ajlun, stretching towards 
Moab; and we can follow with the eye the course of the 
Jordan, with the lakes of Tiberias and Huleh, the moun¬ 
tains of Gilead on the one side, and those of Samaria on 
the other. On the west lie Samaria and Galilee, reach¬ 
ing to Carmel, which is seen, together with Tyre and 
the Mediterranean. Beyond Tyre rises the range of Leb¬ 
anon, which prevents our seeing further north. We see 
Anti-Libanus and the Plain of Damascus, which extend 
as far as the “Meadow Lakes” in the northwest. To the 
south of this limit rise conspicuously to view the com¬ 
plete chain of the Hauran. 


202 


MOUNT HERMON. 


Hermon is the second mountain of Syria for height, 
being perhaps only three or four hundred feet lower 
than the highest point of Lebanon. Limestone com¬ 
poses the main part of the mountain. The loftiest peak, 
which is an obtuse truncated cone, is quite destitute of 
trees and verdure, and the snow never disappears from 
its summit. In spring and summer it is thickly covered, 
but as the year advances it partially melts, and has a 
streaked appearance, and at last only a few white lines, 
until the winter again, early in November, gives it the 
great white dome. A ravine on the north side divides 
Hermon from Anti-Libanus. Bears (Ursus Syriacus) 
are to be found on Mount Hermon, very much like the 
brown bear. Game abounds, too, and foxes and wolves 
are found on the slopes. 

April is the month when the blossoms abound. The 
vine on Mount Hermon is cultivated on its slopes, and 
several wild fruits are found high up; and on the west¬ 
ern slope, at no less a height than over five thousand 
feet, the almond-tree flourishes to such an extent that 
this part has received the name Akabet el Lozi (Almond 
Mountain). Vegetation gradually ceases towards the 
top, and near the snowy crown nothing but the Ranun¬ 
culus Demisus is found.—(L. H.) 


From Banias to Damascus 

Almost immediately after leaving Banias the ascent 
commences, and the roads are bad. We passed a Druse 
village, Mejdel, and then a series of further ascents were 
made, while the head of Hermon, which is covered deeply 
with snow, as late as to the end' of May, lay on our left. 


KEFR-HAWAR. 


203 


A lofty plain, named Merj-el-Hadr, was crossed, and a 
wild glen with a noisy stream entered; then down, some¬ 
times past oases of beauty in wildernesses of desolation, 
until a halt was made in a rocky valley near Beit Jenn. 
A pleasant road travels beside the brook, called at this 
part Jenani. After about forty minutes’ ride, we enter 
a large plain, with remarkably fine views all round, and 
especially of Hermon, but no place of importance is 
visited until Kefr-Hawar is reached. 

Kefr-Hawar is the usual camping-place between 
Banias and Damascus; the village is large, and sur¬ 
rounded by pleasant gardens and groves; the houses are 
curiously built, terrace upon terrace, on the hillside. The 
inhabitants are Moslems, and are not always very friendly 
to Christian travelers who encamp outside their village; 
care should be taken, therefore, not to give any occasion 
of offence. There is nothing in the village to call for 
special attention, except an unknown ruin, and a tra¬ 
dition as to its being the burial-place of Nimrod. 

Proceeding towards Damascus, whether we go by the 
road to the right or that to the left, we have before us a 
long, wearisome ride over a bleak desert, without any¬ 
thing to attract special attention, until we reach a spot 
where the old Roman road, leading to Damascus from 
Egypt and Palestine is gained. It is a spot which will 
be forever memorable, as there is no good reason to 
doubt the tradition which states that here St. Paul be¬ 
held the wondrous vision which attended his conversion 
“As he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and sud¬ 
denly there shined round about him a light from heaven: 
and he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto 
him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me? * * * And he 
trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt Thou 
have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, 
and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou 


204 


BANlAS TO DAMASCUS. 


must do * * * And Saul arose from the earth; and when 
his eyes were opened, he saw no man; but they led him 
by the hand, and brought him into Damascus. And 
he was three days without sight, and neither did eat nor 
drink. And there was a certain disciple at Damascus, 
named Ananias; and to him said the Lord in a vision, 
Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here Lord. And 
the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street 
which is called Straight, and enquire in the house of 
Judas for one called Saul, of Tarsus: for, behold, he 
prayeth, and hath seen in a vision a man named Ananias 
coming in, and putting his hand on him, that he might 
receive his sight. Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have 
heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done 
to Thy saints at Jerusalem: And here he hath authority 
from the chief priests to bind all that call on Thy name 
But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a 
chosen vessel unto Me, to bear My name before the Gen¬ 
tiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: For I will 
shew him how great things he must suffer for My name’s 
sake. And Ananias went his way, and entered into the 
house; and putting his hands on him said, Brother Saul, 
the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the 
way as thou earnest, hath sent me, that thou mightest re¬ 
ceive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost. And 
immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been 
scales: and he received sight forthwith, and arose, and 
was baptized. Then was Saul certain days with the dis¬ 
ciples which were at Damascus. And straightway he 
preached Christ in the synagogues, that He is the Son 
of God. But all that heard him were amazed, and said: 
Is not this he that destroyed them which called on this 
name—in Jerusalem, and came hither for that intent, 
that he might bring them bound unto the chief priests? 
But Saul increased the more in strength, and con- 


BANIAS TO DAMASCUS. 


205 


founded the Jews which dwelt at Damascus, proving that 
this is very Christ. And after that many days were ful¬ 
filled, the Jews took counsel to kill him: But their lay¬ 
ing await was known of Saul, and they watched the 
gates day and night to kill him. Then the disciples took 
him by night, and let him down by the wall in a basket. 
And when Saul was come to Jerusalem, he assayed to 
join himself to the disciples: but they were all afraid 
of him, and believed not that he was a disciple. But 
Barnabas took him, and brought him to the Apostles, 
and declared unto them how he had seen the Lord in 
the way, and that he had spoken to him, and how he 
had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus. 
And he was with them coming in and going out at Jeru¬ 
salem. And he spake boldly in the name of the Lord 
Jesus, and disputed against the Grecians: but they went 
about to slay him. Which when the brethren knew, 
they brought him down to Caesarea, and sent him forth 
to Tarsus” (Act£ 9). 

Before us lay the great plain of Damascus, a sea of 
verdure; in the distance, to the right, I saw the white 
minarets of the city, on the left the magnificent slopes 
of Lebanon; around, streams of water. Several towns 
and villages, without anything remarkable about them 
to call for special notice, were passed, and then the groves 
and gardens for which Damascus is so famous were en¬ 
tered, and the waters of Abana and Pharpar, which seem 
“to be better than all the waters of Israel,” were beside 
us, and we entered the gate of the oldest city in the world. 


Damascus 


[Travelers in Damascus who wish to wander about 
in the city after dark must be careful to carry a lantern; 
if found without one, they will find themselves under ar¬ 
rest, and find the position unpleasant into the bargain. 
These lanterns are simple contrivances, not unlike the 
Chinese lanterns used for Christmas trees. If the trav¬ 
eler finds his progress after dusk interrupted by a closed 
gate, he must shout, “Ifta ya Haris!” i. e., “Open, O watch¬ 
man,” and give a trifling fee. Here, as elsewhere, a fee 
will cover almost every difficulty.] 

Damascus is the oldest city in the world. (Josephus 
makes it even older than Abraham—Ant. 1.63). For 
the traditions of the events in the infancy of the human 
race, which are supposed to have happened in its vicin¬ 
ity, see Pococke 2.115,116. Abraham’s steward was 
“Eliezer of Damascus” (Gen. 15.2). 

Its fame begins with the earliest patriarchs, and con¬ 
tinues to modern times. While other cities of the East 
have risen and decayed, Damascus is still what it was. 


206 




DAMASCUS. 


















































































HISTORY. 


207 


It was founded before Ba’albek and Palmyra, and it has 
outlived them both. While Babylon is a heap in the des¬ 
ert, and Tyre a ruin on the shore, it remains what it is 
called in the Prophecies of Isaiah—“the head of Syria” 
(Isaiah 7.8). 

How important a place it was in the flourishing period 
of the Jewish monarchy, we know from the garrisons 
which David placed there (2 Sam. 8.6; 1 Chron. 18.6), 
and from the opposition it presented to Solomon (1 
Kings 11.24). The history of Naaman and the Hebrew 
captive, Elisha and Gehazi, and of the proud preference 
of its fresh rivers to the thirsty waters of Israel, are 
familiar to every one. And how close its relations con¬ 
tinued to be with the Jews we know from the chronicles 
of Jeroboam and Ahaz, and the prophecies of Isaiah and 
Amos (see 2 Kings 14.28,16.9,10; 2 Chron. 24.23,28.5-23; 
Isaiah 7.8; Amos 1.3-5). 

Its mercantile greatness is indicated by Ezekiel in the 
remarkable words addressed to Tyre. (The port of Bey- 
rout is now to Damascus what Tyre was of old.) “Syria 
was thy merchant by reason of the multitude of the 
wares of thy making; they occupied in thy fairs with 
emeralds, purple, and broidered work, and fine linen, and 
coral, and agate. Damascus was thy merchant in the 
multitude of the wares of thy making, for the multitude 
of all riches; in the wine of Helbon, and white wool” 
(Ezek. 27.16,18). Leaving the Jewish annals, we might 
follow its history through continuous centuries, from the 
time when Alexander sent Parmenio to take it, while the 
conqueror himself was marching from Tarsus to Tyre— 
(Quintus Curtins 3.13; 4.1; Arrian 2.11)—to its occupa¬ 
tion by Pompey. Its relative importance was not so 
great when it was under a Western power, like that of 
the Seleucids or the Romans; hence we find it less fre¬ 
quently mentioned than we might expect by Greek and 


208 


DAMASCUS. 


Roman writers. This arose from the building of Antioch, 
and other cities in Northern Syria—to the letters of Ju¬ 
lian the Apostate, who describes it as “the eye of the 
East”—and onward through the golden days when it was 
the residence of the Ommiad Caliphs, and the metropo¬ 
lis of the Mohammedan world—and through the period 
when its fame was mingled with that of Saladin and 
Tamerlane—to our own days, when the praise of its 
beauty is celebrated by every traveler from Europe. It 
is evident, to use the words of Lamartine, that, like Con¬ 
stantinople, it was a “predestinated capital.” Nor is it 
difficult to explain why its freshness has never faded 
through all this series of vicissitudes and wars. 

Among the rocks and brushwood at the base of Anti- 
Libanus are the fountains of a copious and perennial 
stream, which, after running a course of no great dis¬ 
tance to the southeast, loses itself in a desert lake. But 
before it reaches this dreary boundary, it has distributed 
its channels over the intermediate space, and left a wide 
area behind it, rich with prolific vegetation. These are 
the “streams from Lebanon,” which are known to us in 
the imagery of Scripture (Song of Sol. 4.15), and the 
“rivers of Damascus,” which Naaman, not unnaturally, 
preferred to all the “waters of Israel.” 

By Greek writers, the stream is called Chrysorrhoas 
(Strabo 16.2; Ptolem. 5.15-19. See Pliny N. H. 5.16), 
or “the river of gold.” And this stream is the inesti¬ 
mable inexhausted treasure of Damascus. “The habita¬ 
tions of men must always have been gathered round it, 
as the Nile has inevitably attracted an immemorial popu¬ 
lation to its banks. The desert is a fortification round 
Damascus. The river is its life. It is drawn out into 
water courses, and spread in all directions. For miles 
around it is a wilderness of gardens—gardens with roses 
among the tangled shrubberies, and with fruit on the 


BIBLE EVENTS. 


209 


branches overhead. Everywhere among the trees the 
murmur of unseen rivulets is heard. Even in the city, 
which is in the midst of the garden, the clear rushing of 
the current is a perpetual refreshment. Every dwelling 
has its fountain, and at night, when the sun has set be¬ 
hind Mount Lebanon, the lights of the city are seen 
flashing on the waters.”—(Conybeare and Howson’s “Life 
and Epistles of St. Paul.”) 

Damascus remains the true type of an Oriental city. 
Caravans come and go from Bagdad and Mecca, as of 
old; merchants sit and smoke over their costly bales in 
dim bazaars; drowsy groups sip their coffee in kiosks 
overhanging the river; and all the picturesque costumes 
of the East mingle in the streets. The first view of the 
town from one of the overhanging ridges is like a vision 
of the earthly paradise. Marble minarets, domes glitter¬ 
ing with the crescent, massive towers, and terraces of 
level roofs rise out of a sea of foliage, the white build¬ 
ings, shining with ivory softness through the broad dark 
clumps of verdure, which, miles in depth and leagues in 
circuit, girdle the city—making it, as the people love to 
say, a pearl set in emeralds. It is a wilderness of bloom, 
and fragrance, and fruitage, where olive and pomegran¬ 
ate, orange and apricot, plum and walnut, mingle their 
varied tints of green—a maze of flowering and scented 
thickets, pierced with wild wood and glades, that are 
sweet with roses and jasmine blossom, and alive with 
babbling springs and rivulets. And close up to the for¬ 
est edge comes the yellow desert, and around it are the 
bare mountains, with the snowy crest of Hermon, stand¬ 
ing like a sentinel with shining helmet, on the west—“the 
tower of Lebanon which looketh toward Damascus.” 

The Biblical Allusions to Damascus are very numer¬ 
ous. After the reference to it in the time of Abraham 


210 


DAMASCUS. 


(Gen. 14.15), the next reliable notice is found in 2 Sam. 
8.5. “When the Syrians of Damascus came to succour 
Hadadezer, king of Zobah, David slew of the Syrians 
two and twenty thousand men. Then David put garri¬ 
sons in Syria of Damascus, and the Syrians became ser¬ 
vants to David.” For an account of the battles between 
the kings of Judah and Israel, and the kings of Damas¬ 
cus, see 1 Chron. 18.5,6; 2 Kings 6, 7, 8, 11, 13, 14, 15, 
16. The prophetical utterances concerning the city are 
chiefly Isa. 17.; Amos 1.3-5; Jer. 49.23-27. In the new 
Testament, it will be remembered that St. Paul was 
converted on his way hither (page 203), and that when 
“the governor under Aretas the king, kept the city of the 
Damascenes with a garrison” (2 Cor. 11.32,33), sought 
to apprehend Paul, he was let down in a basket through 
a window and escaped his hands. There is no doubt 
that there were many synagogues here, for St. Paul, 
when he went unto the High Priest, “desired of him 
letters to Damascus to the synagogues” (Acts 9.1,2). 
During the residence of St. Paul here “he preached Christ 
in the synagogues that He is the Son of God * * * and 
confounded the Jews which dwelt at Damascus, proving 
that this is very Christ” (Acts 9.20-22). Christianity 
flourished here so extensively that, in the time of Constan¬ 
tine, the Great Temple was converted into a Christian 
church (page 215). 

The population of Damascus has been variously esti¬ 
mated. In round numbers it may be taken as about two 
hundred and fifty thousand, of whom about two hundred 
thousand are Moslems, six thousand Jews, thirty thou¬ 
sand Greeks, and Syrians, Maronites three thousand, and 
one thousand Armenians, Catholics and Protestants. 
They all speak the same language, Arabic, through Syria 
as well as in Palestine. The Mohommedans of Damas¬ 
cus are notorious for their fanaticism; and the horrible 


THE BAZAARS. 


211 


massacre of July, 1860, when they fell upon the Chris¬ 
tians and slaughtered six thousand of them in the streets, 
and burned the quarter of the city they inhabited (page 
221) is still fresh in memory. 

At least several days should be devoted by every 
traveler to this remarkable city. 


The Bazaars 

of Damascus are celebrated all the world over, and in¬ 
terested us as long as we stayed in the city; for here, 
every day, and at all hours of the day, we saw an assem¬ 
blage of people such as probably cannot be seen in any 
other bazaar in the East. Although Cairo contains a 
much larger population than Damascus, its bazaars are 
by no means so extensive or imposing; nor is it difficult 
to find the reason of this superiority, for whereas the 
capital of Egypt supplies chiefly its own inhabitants only, 
the whole population of the Hauran, as well as the Beda- 
win of the eastern district, depend upon Damascus for 
the necessaries and comforts of life. 

The bazaars are in long avenues, roofed over; not a 
mere jumble of miscellaneous shops, but each bazaar de¬ 
voted to some special trade of manufacture. There is 
the Saddlers’ Bazaar, where the gay but uncomfortable 
Syrian saddles we saw in all their varieties, and any use¬ 
ful articles connected with saddlery, may be purchased. 
The Silk Bazaar—where English travelers generally 
linger to inspect the gorgeous robes of Damascus work, 
and to purchase at least one of those gay head-dresses, 
( Keffiyeh ) which have charmed them so often in Pales- 


212 


DAMASCUS. 


tine—is very attractive. There are a variety of speciali¬ 
ties to be obtained here, such as worked tablecloths; the 
Bedawin ’Abayeh, or bernouse; silk scarfs, and elegant 
tobacco pouches. The Old Clo’ Bazaar, where second¬ 
hand clothes and other articles are sold by a mock auc¬ 
tion, is a center of attraction, and there is generally a 
great deal of amusement to be made out of a visit. The 
Fez Bazaar was visited; it revealed all the arts and mys¬ 
teries of turbans, caps worn under the fez, and the para¬ 
phernalia of Oriental head-gear. The Greek Bazaar is 
one of the most attractive, as here antiquities of all kinds 
are sold, and “Damascus blades” may be bought to the 
usual disadvantage. Some are really exceedingly pretty, 
the handles being wrought with all kinds of cunning 
workmanship. The “coffee sets” sold here are very 
choice; the cups are so small that five or six of them 
would only fill an ordinary English coffee-cup. These 
little vessels are beautifully painted or set in stones, and 
are fitted into delicately carved, thin, metallic receivers 
for handing to guests. 

In addition to these there is the Tobacco Bazaar, where 
pipes, mouth-pieces, and such like things, can be ob¬ 
tained ; the Booksellers’ Bazaar, where none but Moham¬ 
medan books are sold; the Coppersmith’s Bazaar, where, 
if the traveler can endure the noise, he will behold some 
wonderful dishes and culinary utensils; the Boot and 
Shoe Bazaar, where, as in Constantinople, richly deco¬ 
rated slippers and shoes can be obtained, and the yellow 
leather slippers, which ladies are fond of possessing on 
account of their softness. Without minutely describing 
the different bazaars in detail, it may be said that there 
are bazaars for every branch of trade and manufacture, 
and we found we could purchase anything from a shoe 
latchet to a camel. 


THE BAZAARS. 


213 


On Friday, the Market Day, the crowds are enormous, 
and then the “eye of the East” both sees and is to be seen, 
to the best advantage. Then, as in fact on other days, 
there will be seen Persians in gorgeous silks, Nubians in 
black and white, Greeks in national costume, Jews with 
ringlets and without, Bedawin of the desert, pilgrims 
en route to Mecca—a marvelous medley, not to be seen 
anywhere else. The hubbub is generally terrific. “Now 
way must be made for some grandee; now a string of 
camels drives the crowd into a mass, or a party of mid¬ 
shipmen just arrived from Beyrout rush through the ba¬ 
zaars on fleet donkeys, scattering sherbet stalls as they 
pass. And in the midst of it all, the richly-robed mer¬ 
chants sit in the sills of their shops, smoking their tchi- 
bouks and sipping coffee with the most consummate in¬ 
difference.” In addition to the bazaars, we were greatly 
interested in visiting the Khans, where wholesale trade 
is carried on. They are for the most part owned by 
merchants of immense wealth, and the carpets of Persia, 
the muslins of India, the prints of Manchester, etc., etc., 
form the stock-in-trade. 

The Shops are not less curious than bazaars or Khans; 
some are devoted to water-coolers and earthenware, 
some, and these are specially worth visiting, for attar 
of roses. In the shops devoted to articles of consump¬ 
tion many peculiarities were noticed; bakers’ shops filled 
with thin, warm, flat bread, and cakes; the confectioners’, 
with every variety of colored sweetmeat and pleasant 
beverages, supposed to be iced with snow from Lebanon; 
the butchers’ shops, though less tempting, were curious 
from the way in which the meat was cut up, and exposed 
for sale. 

The street vendors go about in legions; lemonade, 
raisin water, fruits, pistachio nuts—in short, everything 


214 


DAMASCUS. 


that can be hawked about is sold in the streets; the cries 
of the sellers are amusing, and, when interpreted, to a 
certain extent instructive. The bread boy cries, “O 
Allah! who sustainest us, send trade!” the drink seller 
cries, “O cheer thine heart!” as he rattles his copper cups 
in his hand; and so on. 


The Great Mosque 

[Until within a few years past, the Great Mosque was 
closed to all save Moslems. Now, Christians can obtain 
admission; only twenty persons, however, are allowed 
at one time, and this only upon application to the Consul. 
The charge is four dollars for the party. Slippers, which 
are by the door-way, have to be put on before entering 
the Mosque.] 

The Mosque stands in the midst of a spacious quad¬ 
rangle, and is as large, or larger, than the Mosque of 
Omar. It has been pointed out by good authorities that 
this building, so venerated by the followers of the 
prophet, exhibits three distinct styles of architecture, 
marking three great epochs in its history, and proclaim¬ 
ing the three great dynasties that had successively pos¬ 
sessed it. First of all it had been a heathen temple, and 
its massive stones, and beautiful arches and gate, pro¬ 
claim Grecian or Roman architecture. Whether the 
temple was built by the Seleucidse, the successors of 
Alexander the Great, who reigned in Damascus about a 
century before the Christian era, or by the Romans, who 
entered it under the leadership of Pompey, B. C. 64, can¬ 
not be determined, for these rulers succeeded so closely 
upon one another, that no great difference can be discov- 


THE GREAT MOSQUE. 


215 


ered, or could be expected, between their respective styles 
of architecture. It cannot be questioned, however, that 
a heathen temple once stood on this spot, in which for 
several centuries, sacrifices were offered to the gods of 
Pagan mythology. When the decaying Roman Empire 
was divided into two great rival dominions of west and 
east, and the power on the banks of the Tiber was out¬ 
shone by the power on the shores of the Bosphorus, 
Damascus owned the sway of the Greek Empire at Con¬ 
stantinople, and, after Constantine had embraced Chris¬ 
tianity, the temple, which had been sacred to Jupiter, be¬ 
came sacred to Jesus, and was dedicated to John the Bap¬ 
tist. We know that the Christian faith immediately 
after the apostolic age advanced rapidly in Damascus; 
for church history informs us that, at the Council of Nice, 
A. D. 325, convened to pronounce an authoritative opin¬ 
ion on the question of the Divinity of Christ, as raised 
by the Arian controversy, its metropolitan bishop at¬ 
tended with seven of his suffragans. Only about fifty 
years ago, a Greek inscription was found on a large stone, 
at one of the gates, to the following effect: “This Church 
of the blessed John Baptist was restored by Arcadius, 
the son of Theodosius.” Arcadius ascended the throne 
A. D. 395, seventy years after the establishment of Chris¬ 
tianity by Constantine. His father is well known to have 
exerted all his power to extirpate heathen worship from 
every part of the empire. During his reign the temple at 
Damascus may have been pillaged and partly ruined. 
His son restored it, dedicated it to the worship of the 
true God, and caused a noble inscription to be placed 
above the principal door. There it still stands, as if in 
defiance of the crescent that has usurped the place of the 
cross, and as if prophetic of the day when Jesus shall 
reign over the hearts of the Damascenes: 

“Thy kingdom, O Christ, is a kingdom of all ages 


216 


DAMASCUS. 


[that is, an everlasting kingdom], and thy dominion lasts 
throughout all generations,” 

Strange that Moslem fanaticism should have allowed 
such an inscription to remain upon the chief gate of their 
consecrated mosque, which sounds so like a protestation 
against their usurpation of the place. 

For nearly three centuries the building continued to be 
the cathedral church for Syria, while Christianity was 
predominant in the land. When at last the city fell into 
the hands of the Moslems, partly by treaty and partly by 
treachery (A. D. 634), the church was equally divided 
between the followers of Christ and the followers of the 
prophet. “On the accession of Walid, the sixth khalif 
of the Omenyades (A. D. 705), the whole church was 
demanded by the Moslems. The Christians refused, and 
showed that, by the terms of the original treaty, their 
rights were solemnly guaranteed to them. But Moslem 
policy, then as crooked as it is now, found an easy mode 
of evading inconvenient treaties; and the poor Christians 
were compelled to give in. The khalif immediately en¬ 
tered the church with guards, and ordered them to re¬ 
move or destroy every vestige of Christian worship. 
Standing on the great altar, Walid himself directed the 
work of spoliation. Seeing his position, one of his fol¬ 
lowers, more superstitious or more timid than the rest, 
thus addressed him: 'Prince of the Faithful, I tremble 
for your safety. The power of that image against which 
you stand may be exerted against you.’ 'Fear not for 
me,’ replied the proud Moslem, 'for the first spot on 
which I shall lay my battleaxe will be that image’s head.’ 
Thus saying, he lifted his weapon and dashed the image 
to pieces. The Christians raised a cry of horror, but their 
voices were drowned in the triumphant shout, 'Ullahu 
Ak-bar.’ Having thus obtained possession, Walid spared 
neither time nor expense in decorating the building. * He 


THE GREAT MOSQUE. 


217 


made it the most magnificent mosque in his wide domin¬ 
ions. And even now, neglected and shattered as it is, it 
has few equals in the Mohammedan empire.”— Fergusson’s 
“Sacred and Continental Scenes”) 

There are many things to see in the Mosque and 
Haram. The entrance archway on the west is antique 
and of very beautiful workmanship. The interior of the 
mosque is impressive, with nave and aisles supported by 
columns. The first things to claim attention will be the 
number of lamps hung from the ceiling, and the inscrip¬ 
tions from the Koran; the stained windows, the various 
praying places, and the handsome carpets covering the 
marble pavement. In the transept is a “chapel” said to 
contain the Head of John the Baptist, also said to have 
been found in the crypt of the church. 

The Pulpit is solid and handsome; the Mosaics on the 
walls are old. 

The Court is spacious, and contains in the center a 
marble fountain, where the worshippers perform their 
ablutions before entering the mosque. Corridors sur¬ 
round the court, and I saw the traces of the gilding with 
which they were once beautified. In the western part 
of the court is the “Dome of Treasures,” containing relics 
and MSS. of immense value, but its contents are never 
under any circumstances exhibited. 

There are three minarets to the mosque, and it is usual 
to ascend one at least. The Minaret of the Bride, is the 
most ancient, and commands the best view. It is as¬ 
cended by 160 steps. The view is magnificent. When I 
looked down upon the gardens of Damascus, a perfect 
fairy land, I saw the silver threads of Barada running 
like a network through the city and plain, and gazed 
upon the wonderful city crowded with a dense popula¬ 
tion, with here a cluster of mud huts, side by side with 
gaily painted dwellings, with marble courts and foun- 


218 


DAMASCUS. 


tains, and every appearance of Oriental magnificence; 
and all around the bristling minarets of mosques, and the 
chief buildings and places of interest. The Minaret of 
Jesus is so named from a legend that when Jesus comes 
to judge the world He will descend first to this minaret. 

This mosque may, and, tradition affirms, does, speak 
of a very ancient worship; and it is highly probable that 
this was the site of the Temple of Rimmon, the god 
worshipped by the Syrians. If so, it was here that Naa- 
man deposited his “two mules’ burden of earth,” and 
reared his own altar. 

In the story recorded in 2 Kings 5. “Now Naaman, 
captain of the host of the king of Syria, was a great man 
with his master, and honorable, because by him the Lord 
had given deliverance unto Syria: he was also a mighty 
man in valor, but he was a leper. And the Syrians had 
gone out by companies, and had brought away captive 
out of the land of Israel a little maid; and she waited 
on Naaman’s wife. And she said unto her mistress, 
Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in 
Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy. And 
one went in, and told his lord, saying, thus and thus 
said the maid that is of the land of Israel. And the king 
of Syria said, Go to, go, and I will send a letter unto the 
king of Israel. And he departed, and took with him ten 
talents of silver, and six thousand pieces of gold, and ten 
changes of raiment. And he brought the letter to the 
king of Israel, saying, Now when this letter is come 
unto thee, behold, I have therewith sent Naaman my 
servant to thee, that thou mayest recover him of his 
leprosy. And it came to pass, when the king of Israel 
had read the letter, that he rent his clothes, and said, Am 
I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man doth send 
unto me to recover a man of his leprosy? wherefore con¬ 
sider, I pray you, and see how he seeketh a quarrel against 


BIBLE EVENTS. 


219 


me. And it was so, when Elisha the man of God hath heard 
that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, that he sent 
to the king, saying, Wherefore hast thou rent thy clothes? 
let him come now to me, and he shall know that there 
is a prophet in Israel. So ’Naaman came with his horses 
and with his chariot, and stood at the door of the house 
of Elisha. And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, say¬ 
ing, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh 
shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean. But 
Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, 
I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand, and 
call on the name of the Lord his God, and strike his 
hand over the place, and recover the leper. Are not 
Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all 
the waters of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be 
clean? So he turned and went away in a rage. And his 
servants came near, and spake unto him, and said, My 
father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, 
wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, 
when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean? Then went 
he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, ac¬ 
cording to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh 
came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was 
clean. And he returned to the man of God, he and all his 
company, and came, and stood before him: and he said, 
Behold, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, 
but in Israel: now, therefore, I pray thee, take a blessing 
of thy servant. But he said, As the Lord liveth before 
whom I stand, I will receive none. And he urged him 
to take it; but he refused. And Naaman said, Shall there 
not then, I pray thee, be given to thy servant two mules’ 
burden of earth? for thy servant will henceforth offer 
neither burnt offering nor sacrifice unto other gods, but 
unto the Lord. In this thing the Lord pardon thy ser¬ 
vant, that when my master goeth into the house of Rim- 


220 


DAMASCUS. 


mon to worship there, and he leaneth on my hand, and 
I bow myself in the house of Rimmon: when I bow down 
myself in the house of Rimmon, the Lord pardon thy 
servant in this thing. And he said unto him, Go in peace. 
So he departed from him a little way. But Gehazi, the 
servant of Elisha the man of God, said, Behold, my master 
hath spared Naaman this Syrian, in not receiving at his 
hands that which he brought: but, as the Lord liveth, I will 
run after him, and take somewhat of him. So Gehazi fol¬ 
lowed after Naaman. And when Naaman saw him running 
after him, he lighted down from the chariot to meet him, 
and said, Is all well? And he said, All is well. My master 
hath sent me, saying, Behold, even now there be come to me 
from Mount Ephraim two young men of the sons of the 
prophets: give them, I pray thee, a talent of silver, and two 
changes of garments. And Naaman said, Be content, take 
two talents. And he urged him, and bound two talents of 
silver in two bags, with two changes of garments, and 
laid them upon two of his servants; and they bare them 
before him. And when he came to the tower, he took 
them from their hand, and bestowed them in the house; 
and he let the men go, and they departed. But he went 
in, and stood before his master. And Elisha said unto 
him, Whence comest thou, Gehazi? And he said, Thy 
servant went no whither. And he said unto him, Went 
not mine heart with thee, when the man turned again 
from his chariot to meet thee? Is it a time to receive 
money, and to receive garments, and oliveyards, and 
vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and 
maidservants? The leprosy therefore of Naaman shall 
cleave unto thee, and unto thy seed for ever. And he 
went out from his presence a leper as white as snow.” 

The Temple in which Naaman deposited his “two 
mules’ burden of earth” was probably that in which King 
Ahaz saw the altar, which so took his fancy that he had 


THE CHRISTIAN QUARTER. 


221 


it reproduced in Jerusalem. “And King Ahaz went to 
Damascus to meet Tiglath-Pileser, King of Assyria, and 
saw an altar that was at Damascus: and King Ahaz sent 
to Urijah the priest the fashion of the altar, and the 
pattern of it, according to all the workmanship thereof. 
And Urijah the priest built an altar according to all that 
King Ahaz had sent from Damascus: so Urijah the priest 
made it against the king came from Damascus. And 
when the king was come from Damascus, the king saw 
the altar: and the king approached to the altar, and of¬ 
fered thereon” (2 Kings 16.10-12). 

The “Street called Straight,” which we walked from 
one end to the other, is no doubt the street referred to 
in the New Testament. It is not architecturally beauti¬ 
ful, nor is it actually straight, but all along its course, 
traces have been found of the colonnade with which it 
was formerly adorned. It is a good English mile in 
length, and runs right across the city from west to east. 
Formerly it was much wider than it is at the present 
time. It still bears the name, Derb-el-Mustakim. 

The Christian Quarter, so memorable for the terrible 
scenes of 1860, still bears traces of those events. The 
churches, which were then destroyed, have been rebuilt. 
The story of the massacre is too long to tell in detail— 
how petty persecutions led to more serious ones, and 
how at last the storm which had been brewing burst with 
fearful violence. Colonel Churchill has told the story 
very graphically, and the reader will like to read some of 
the details as told by him. By sunset on the terrible 
9th of July the whole Christian Quarter was in flames; 
the water supplies were cut off, and miserable thousands 
were hemmed in by a hopeless enclosure of fire and steel. 
“No sooner had Abd-el-Kader”—who was then in Da¬ 
mascus—“gained intelligence of the frightful disaster, 
than he sent out his faithful Algerines into the Christian 


222 


DAMASCUS. 


Quarter with orders to rescue all the wretched sufferers 
they could meet. Hundreds were safely escorted to his 
house before dark. Many rushed to the British Con¬ 
sulate. As night advanced, fresh hordes of marauders— 
Kurds, Arabs, Druses—entered the city, and swelled the 
furious mob of fanatics, who now, glutted with spoil, 
began to cry out for blood. The dreadful work then 
began. All through that awful night, and the whole of 
the following day, the pitiless massacre went on. To 
attempt to detail all the atrocities that were committed 
would be repugnant to the feelings, and useless. * * * 
Hundreds disappeared, hurried away to distant parts of 
the surrounding country, where they were instantly mar¬ 
ried to Mohammedans. Men of all ages, from the boy to 
the old man, were forced to apostatize, were circumcised 
on the spot, in derision, and then put to death. The 
churches and convents, which in the first paroxysm of 
terror had been filled to suffocation, presented piles of 
corpses, mixed up promiscuously with the wounded, and 
those only half dead, whose last agonies were endured 
amidst flaming beams and calcined blocks of stone falling 
upon them with earthquake shock. The thoroughfares 
were choked with the slain. To say that the Turks took 
no means whatever to stay this huge deluge of massacre 
and fire would be superfluous. They connived at it; they 
instigated it; they ordered it; they shared in it. Abd-el- 
Kader alone stood between the living and the dead. Fast 
as his Algerines brought in those whom he had rescued, 
he reassured them, consoled them, fed them. He had 
himself gone out and brought in numbers personally. 
Forming them into detached parties, he forwarded them 
under successive guards to the castle. There, as the ter¬ 
rific day closed in, nearly twelve thousand, of all ages 
and sexes, were collected and huddled together, a for¬ 
tunate but exhausted retinue, fruits of his untiring exer- 


THE CHRISTIAN QUARTER. 


223 


tions. There they remained for weeks, lying on the bare 
ground without coverings, hardly with clothing, exposed 
to the sun’s scorching rays; their rations scantily served 
out—cucumbers and coarse bread. Lest they might ob¬ 
tain an unreserved repose, the Turkish soldiers kept 
alarming them with rumors of an approaching irruption, 
when they would all be given over to the sword. 

“Abd-el-Kader himself was now menaced. His house 
was filled with hundreds of fugitives. European consuls 
and native Christians. The Mohammedans, furious at be¬ 
ing thus balked of their prey, advanced towards it, de¬ 
claring they would have them. Informed of the move¬ 
ment, the hero coolly ordered his horse to be saddled, 
put on his cuirass and helmet, and mounting, drew his 
sword. His faithful followers formed around him, brave 
remnant of his old guard, comrades in many a well- 
fought field, illustrious victors of the Moulaia, where, on 
the 18th of December, 1847, 2,500 men, under his in¬ 
spiring command, attacked the army of the Emperor of 
Morocco, 60,000 strong, and entirely defeated it. The 
fanatics came in sight. Singly he charged into the midst, 
and drew up. ‘Wretches!’ he exclaimed, ‘is this the way 
you honor the prophet? May his curses be upon you! 
Shame, upon you, shame. You will yet live to repent. 
You think you may do as you please with the Christians, 
but the day of retribution will come. The Franks will 
yet turn your mosques into churches. Not a Christian 
will I give up. They are my brothers. Stand back, or 
I will give my men the order to fire.’ The crowd dis¬ 
persed. Not a man of that Moslem throng dared raise 
his voice or lift his arm against the renowned champion 
of Israel.” Consternation spread throughout Syria, and 
in every town and village the Christians anticipated a 
speedy doom. 


224 


DAMASCUS. 


The French and English squadrons, however, were 
seen off Bey rout, and the French standards were soon 
waving on the soil. But for the promptitude with which 
the assistance came, it may have been that the whole 
Christian race would have been immolated, the impres¬ 
sion among the Mohammedans being, that the Sultan 
had issued a decree for the extermination of the infidel. 
As it was, sufficient restraints were loosened to give 
power to the vengeance and lust of the Turks, who, on 
a small scale, performed such bloody tragedies as have so 
recently been carried out to a more fearful extent in the 
“Bulgarian Atrocities.” The sequel to the story of the 
massacre is thus told by Colonel Churchill: “Achmed 
Pasha, the governor and military commander of Damas¬ 
cus, convicted on the evidence of a certain Salek Zechy 
Bey, a Mohammedan—who boldly came forward and ac¬ 
cused him of gross dereliction of duty, and of having, 
by his cowardice and impotence, caused the massacre, 
was shot. Three Turkish officers, who were present at 
the massacre at Hasbaya, and a hundred and seventeen 
individuals—chiefly Bashi-Bazouks, police, and wander¬ 
ing characters—met with the same fate. About four 
hundred of the lower orders were condemned to impris¬ 
onment and exile. Of the citizens, fifty-six were hanged. 
Of the notables, eleven were exiled to Cyprus and 
Rhodes, and their property sequestered for the time be¬ 
ing. It has since been restored to their families. These 
notables are living in their places of exile, with all the 
comforts and luxuries of life; one of them has celebrated 
his marriage. A sum of about £200,000 was proposed to 
be levied on the city, which three or four of its principal 
merchants could furnish alone with ease. 

“Such is all the amount of retribution which outraged 
Christian Europe has been able to obtain for the wanton 
plundering and burning to the ground of the whole Chris- 


THE CHRISTIAN QUARTER. 


225 


tian Quarter of Damascus entailing a loss to that un¬ 
fortunate community of at least £2,000,000 sterling—for 
the inhuman, savage and cold-blooded massacre of 6,000 
inoffensive Christians, who possessed no arms whatever ; 
for the ravishing of their wives and daughters; and for 
the expulsion from their desolated hearths of 20,000 beg¬ 
gared and defenceless victims of Mohammedan rage and 
fanaticism, whose only crime was, to use the words of 
the British consul, ‘that they were the followers of 
Christ/ ” 

The Protestant Mission is in this quarter of the city, 
and was visited with interest. 

The Jewish Quarter we reached by crossing the 
Straight Street from the Christian Quarter. There are 
some very wealthy residents here, and some of the apart¬ 
ments of their spacious houses are accessible. The Jews 
have ten synagogues in the city. 

Mosques abound in Damascus (there are 248 mosques 
and schools), but there is nothing in them to call for any 
special mention, as they do not materially differ from 
mosques elsewhere in Syria and Palestine. Having seen 
the Great Mosque (page 214), we considered that we 
had seen all. 

Gates.—The following gates indicate the circuit of the 
old walls. The East Gate (Bab Shurky) is ruinous, and 
bears memorials of Roman masonry. Near the closed 
gate, Bab Kisan—it has been closed for 700 years—tradi¬ 
tion states that St. Paul was let down through the win¬ 
dow in a basket and escaped (page 210) ; and near here is 
a tomb under some trees, said to be the tomb of a Saint 
George, who assisted St. Paul to escape, and perished in 
consequence. The Latins look upon this as the scene of 
St. Paul’s conversion. Half a mile east of the Bab Kisan 
is the Christian Cemetery. Buckle, the famous English 
historian, lies buried here. A short distance from the 


226 


DAMASCUS. 


Little Gate ( Beb-es-Saghir ) is a vast Moslem cemetery, 
where three of the wives of Mohammed lie buried, and 
many of the great men of the city, warriors and poli¬ 
ticians. Here too is buried the celebrated historian, Ibn 
’Asaker. The Iron Gate ( Bab-el-Hadid ) is close by the 
castle, and the Serai, or Palace, now used as barracks. 
Between the gates, Bab-el-Hadid , and Bab-el-Faraj, 
where the walls are washed by the river, is the Saddlers’ 
Bazaar, and near it is a mammoth plane tree, over 40 
feet in circumference, with enormous branches. The age 
of the tree is uncertain. Thomas’ Gate (Bab Tuma), 
named after a Crusader who fought so gallantly as to 
gain the admiration of the Moslems who slaughtered 
him, is near the Protestant Mission. Houses upon the 
wall were observed near here, and they illustrated 
the story of Rahab, who let down the spies, and of the 
escape of St. Paul in a basket. 

Returning to the East Gate, the traditional House of 
Ananias and the House of Naaman were pointed out. 
The latter stands close to a tumble-down mosque. There 
is appropriateness in turning this traditional site into a 
Leper Hospital (2 Kings 5). 

Before leaving Damascus we rode to the top of that 
hill where Mohammed stood and made his celebrated 
comparison of Damascus with Paradise; the Prophet is 
said to have stood here, while yet a camel-driver from 
Mecca, and, after looking on the scene below, to have 
turned away without entering the city. “Man,” he said, 
“can have but one Paradise, and my Paradise is fixed 
above.” 

From this hill we had a magnificent view over the 
oldest city in the world. 


From Damascus to Beyrout, 
Via Ba’albek 

Leaving Damascus we soon saw on the top of a high 
hill, the so-called Tomb of Abel (Kabr Habil ) ; it is a 
Moslem Wely, and is thirty feet long. This is also the 
supposed site of his murder. 

Our course now lies through the glen of the Barada 
until we reach the Plain of Zebedany, about three miles 
in breadth, surrounded by mountains. The plain is 
richly cultivated and in the village of Zebedany, which 
has a population of over three thousand, there is an 
abundance of trees and gardens, richer in their profusion 
than we saw anywhere else in Syria. 

The village on the high hill above Zebedany is Bludan, 
the summer residence of the Damascus British Consul, 
and other people of importance. Further on is the vil¬ 
lage of Yahfufeh and Neby Shit, supposed to be the tomb 
of Seth. His sepulchre is 121 feet long! From these 
villages the view of the whole range of Lebanon, a mighty 
wall of dazzling snow, with the richly cultivated plain 
of Buka’a below, is grand beyond description. With 
exquisite views all around us, we continue until we reach 
the village of Bereitan, supposed to be Berothai, a city of 
Hadadezer, from which “King David took exceeding 
much brass” (2 Sam. 8.8). In about an hour after leav¬ 
ing this village, the ruins of Ba’albek were visible. 


227 


Ba’albek 


Ba’albek is the Heliopolis of the Greeks and Romans, 
celebrated for its sun-worship in the temple, which was 
one of the wonders of the world. There is an inscription 
in the grand portico of the temple still existing, which 
has been translated thus: “To the great gods of Heliop¬ 
olis. For the safety of the lord Ant. Pius Aug., and of 
Julia Aug., the mother of our lord of the Castra (and) 
Senate. A devoted (subject) of the sovereigns (caused) 
the capitals of the columns of Antoninus, whilst in the 
air (to be) embossed with gold at her own expense.” 

John Malala, of Antioch, a writer of the seventh cen¬ 
tury, states that “^Elius Antoninus Pius built at Helio¬ 
polis of Phoenicia, in Lebanon, a great temple to Jupiter, 
which was one of the wonders of the world.” 

From the expression of the inscription, “To the great 
gods of Heliopolis,” it would appear that the Great Tem¬ 
ple was originally a Pantheon. Coins of a very early date 
show that there were two temples at Ba’albek—the 
greater one corresponding with the Pantheon, and the 
lesser with the temple which was probably the Temple of 
Baal. The word Baal means in the Hebrew language 
Lord, and was given by the Phoenicians and Canaanites 
to their chief deity, the Sun; the female sharer of his 
honors being Ashtoreth, or Astarte, the moon. Ba’albek 
means, in the Arabic language, the city, or crowded place 
of the sun, and in all probability corresponds with Baal - 
gad, the troop of the sun, mentioned more than once in 


228 


HISTORY. 


229 


the book of Joshua, with a clearly-defined topographical 
position. “So Joshua took all that land from the Mount 
Halak, that goeth up to Seir, even unto Baal-gad in the 
valley of Lebanon under Mount Hermon” (Josh. 11.17, 
12.7,13.5). When the Greeks came into possession of 
the district, they, according to customary usage, while 
holding the fane as a place of worship, altered its name, 
and called it Heliopolis; i. e. y the City of the Sun, the 
name which Alexander gave to the city of On, in Egypt. 
In the fifth century, Macrobius states, “that the image 
worshipped at Heliopolis in Syria was brought from 
Heliopolis in Egypt.” When the Romans possessed 
Syria they held the place as sacred, but dedicated it speci¬ 
ally, though not exclusively, to the worship of Jupiter. 
In the time of Constantine these false worships were 
abolished, and a vast basilica was erected here by him. 
In the later ages the Moslems obtained possession, 
turned the temples into fortresses, prosecuted their petty 
wars and by degrees the glorious city fell into its present 
mass of ruins. 

The following resume of the history of Ba’albek, from 
the pen of M. Pressense, will be read with interest: 

“Ba’albek, or Heliopolis, was an insignificant town of 
small note, except in the time of the decline of the 
Roman Empire. One may judge, from the remains oi 
this inglorious city, with what a pride of pomp Paganism 
arrayed itself before its death. The temples of Ba’albek 
date—at least as the time of their positive erection—from 
the reign of Antoninus Pius. The Acropolis of the town 
was entirely isolated, and placed on an eminence, sur¬ 
rounded with gigantic walls, the stones of which be¬ 
longed to that Phoenician architecture, which, by its 
colossal genius, has earned the name of Cyclopean. 

“Three temples rose on this Acropolis: a Circular 
Temple, of which there remains only a few highly-deco- 


230 


BA’ALBEK. 


rated chapels; a Temple of Jupiter, which has preserved 
a great part of its portico, and its cella quite entire, with 
its architrave ornate to excess, its fluted columns, and a 
rich profusion of decoration; and a Temple of the Sun, 
the remains of which clearly indicate its former grand¬ 
eur. A peristyle led to a vast hexagon surrounded by 
niches and columns; a large square court conducted to 
the Sanctuary. To this edifice belonged the five splen¬ 
did pillars which rear to such an astonishing height an 
enormous mass of stone, as finely carved as if designed 
for a temple of miniature proportions. 

“The peculiar characteristic of this architecture is pre¬ 
cisely this combination of the immense and the graceful, 
of Cyclopean vastness with the refined elegance of an art 
already in its decadence, but still in possession of most 
marvelous processes. Nowhere is the Corinthian acan¬ 
thus carved with more delicacy than on these gigantic 
blocks. 

“After studying these three temples in detail, the mind 
must be abandoned freely to the impression produced by 
the magnificent whole. The fallen fragments heaped on 
the ground are as wonderful as the standing remains. 

“While the five pillars of the cella of the Great Temple 
rear themselves grandly to the eye, the earth around the 
foot of the isolated columns still standing, is strewed 
with enormous debris, which form a magnificent pell- 
mell, displaying all imaginable forms of Grecian archi¬ 
tecture. It is the ruin of an entire city, the ideal ruin of 
a dream, full of disorder, poetry, grandeur. 

“This is the sublime cenotaph of two distinct, but 
blended civilizations; the old natural religions, which so 
long held Asia captive, mingle the wrecks of their colos¬ 
sal architecture with the exquisite forms that the gqtuus 
of Greece threw off as if in sport. 


BA’ALBEK. 


231 


“Spring casts the garland of her perpetual youth over 
this thrice dead past—a smiling irony; camels and sheep 
graze on the grass which grows over columns and capi¬ 
tals. Picture the white chain of Libanus looking down 
on this overthrown city; embrace in one comprehensive 
glance of thought all the contrasts blended here, and the 
thrilling effect of such a scene will be understood.” 

Entering the ruins by a breach in the wall, we find 
ourselves in a large Court, seventy yards long by about 
eighty-five wide; it is in the form of a hexagon, with here 
and there rectangular recesses in the wall, each with col¬ 
umns in front. A handsome portal led from this hexagon 
into the Great Court, about a hundred and fifty yards 
long by a hundred and twenty-five wide, in the center of 
which stood the Basilica, while around were rectangular 
recesses, called by the Romans Exedra. Shell-shaped 
niches, and others with remarkably ornate decorations 
adorned the walls. It will be observed that the cham¬ 
bers on one side are an exact repetition of the chambers 
on the other. It was in front of this great court that the 
principal temple of Ba’albek reared its head. 

The Great Temple is now but a mass of ruins, it was 
a peristyle, i. e., a temple with columns running round 
it; of these, six columns only remain: these we saw as 
soon as we sighted Ba’albek, and upon them we gazed 
as long as we remained there with unwearying delight. 
They are about sixty feet in height, with Corinthian cap¬ 
itals, and bordered with a frieze. The Arabs have ruth¬ 
lessly hacked them, for the purpose of securing the iron 
cramps, and have done so much damage, that recent 
visitors, practical architects, have prophesied the speedy 
fall of the last remains of, perhaps, the finest temple in 
the world. Originally there were seventeen columns on 
either side of the temple, and ten at either end, fifty-four 
in all; the building enclosed by them being two hundred 


232 


BA’ALBEK. 


and ninety feet long by a hundred and sixty broad. All 
around there are masses of broken columns and debris. 

Turning now through a passage on the left, we reach 
the Temple of the Sun, which stands on a basement or 
platform lower than that of the Great Temple. There 
is nothing finer in all Syria than this magnificent and 
well preserved ruin; nineteen out of the forty-six col¬ 
umns with which it was formerly adorned, remain; they 
are each sixty-five feet high, including base and capital, 
and six feet three inches in diameter. One of these col¬ 
umns has fallen against the cella, in which position it has 
remained for more than a century; the capitals and en¬ 
tablatures of the columns and the friezes round them are 
exquisitely executed. 

Probably the most interesting and beautiful part of the 
whole structure is the Portal of the Temple. Incredible 
as it may appear, the door-posts are monoliths, orna¬ 
mented most richly with foliage and genii. The archi¬ 
trave is of three stones, and on the lower side is the figure 
of the eagle, the emblem of the sun. The stone in the 
center looks dangerous, but has been securely propped 
up. Beside the portal there is a spiral staircase, by 
means of which a possible but unsafe journey may be 
made upon the walls. The cella, about a hundred feet by 
seventy is exceedingly rich in ornamentation; eight 
fluted half-columns are on either side, and at the west 
end was the altar of the Christian church. All the details 
of this wonderful building deserve minute inspection. I 
walked round the walls; and the substructure, with its 
Cyclopean masonry, is as wonderful, or more so, than the 
temple itself. All the masonry of the outer wall is pro¬ 
digious in its dimensions; but the marvel of marvels is the 
western wall, where are Three Stones, the largest ever 
used in architecture. The temple itself was called Tri- 
lithon, or three-stoned, probably from these stupendous 




THE GREAT STONE IN QUARRIES NEAR BA’AEBEK 





















































BA’ALBEK. 


233 


blocks. One stone measures sixty-four feet long, another 
sixty-three feet eight inches, and a third sixty-three feet; 
each is thirteen feet high and thirteen feet thick, and they 
have been placed in the wall at a height of twenty feet 
above the ground. How they were ever raised is a prob¬ 
lem which the science of our own day fails to unravel. 

The Circular Temple is close to the modern village. 
It is a gem in its exterior, but has nothing remarkable 
inside. Eight Corinthian columns, each a monolith, sur¬ 
round it, while a richly executed frieze of flowers adorns 
the wall of the cella. The entablature is heavily laden 
with decoration. As late as a century ago Christians of 
the Greek Church worshipped here, but a century hence 
it is probable the Circular Temple will be no more. 

A traveler who had but recently passed through Pal¬ 
estine thus described his impressions: “There are many 
things to wonder at and admire in Baalbek. One never 
wearies of gazing upon those graceful ruins, beautiful 
from every aspect and in every light; but it is not ‘on 
holy ground’ that we are standing, and with the influ¬ 
ences upon us which the ruins of Palestine have created, 
we forget the might of Phoenician strength, the poetry 
of Grecian architecture, the pomp of Roman power, and 
sigh to think that all this magnificence was pride, this 
worship pagan, and all this skill and grace and beauty 
defiled by voluptuous and soul-destroying sin. I climbed 
a wall and sat upon a richly-sculptured parapet, watching 
the sunset. To the left was Hermon, to the right Leb¬ 
anon, and at my feet the whole vast area of ruins. It 
was an hour full of suggestion, and one could not fail to 
trace how the word of the Lord was receiving its fulfill¬ 
ment; how the false systems were lying in the dust and 
darkness, while His own prophetic proclamation was 
gaining daily new force and power: T am the light of 
the world.’ ” 


From Ba’albek to Beyrout Direct 

Soon after leaving the ruins, the Quarries, from whence 
the great stones used for the platform of the Temple of 
the Sun were excavated, were passed. There is one gi¬ 
gantic stone still lying where it was left by the Phoeni¬ 
cian workmen 4,000 years ago. It is sixty-eight feet long, 
fourteen high and fourteen broad. It is estimated that it 
weighs nearly 1,200 tons. 

Our course now lay over the Buka’a, the broad valley 
between Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon, which we crossed 
diagonally, and observed one or two ruins on the right, 
scarcely worth the trouble of visiting. 

The valley looked smooth, level, and well cultivated; 
but after rains it is difficult riding, as there are so many 
swampy places. The journey was broken for mid-day 
rest and lunch at the village at Kerak Nuh, where there 
is the reputed Tomb of Noah, which measures between 
fifty and sixty yards in length! It is probably a disused 
aqueduct. Near here is a village, very beautiful for situ¬ 
ation, called El Mu’allaka, surrounded by groves and or¬ 
chards, and in the midst of fertility. 

Zaleh is a large town, the largest in Lebanon, with a 
population of nearly sixteen thousand, of whom more 
than nine-tenths are Christians. There is an air of com¬ 
fort and cleanliness about the place, and intelligence 
among the people, more than is met with elsewhere. 

A good wine is grown in the neighborhood, and there 
are many thriving manufactories. 


234 



DRUSE WOMEN IN GROUP—LEBANON. 





































































BA’ALBEK TO BEYROUT. 


235 


Through the steep streets there is a watercourse, in 
which babbles a brook descending from the Sannin, a 
mountain hard by. During the massacre of 1860 the 
town suffered terribly, and was captured by the Druses, 
who burnt it to the ground. 

We camped at Maksie, and resumed the journey on the 
following morning, and rode to Beyrout, over Mount 
Lebanon. 

A good road, gently winding, leads by a series of zig¬ 
zags to the summit of Lebanon, and then descends by 
another series of zig-zags to Beyrout. 

When we reached the Summit of Lebanon, the scenery 
was exquisite. On our right hand was a wild, magnificent 
gorge, the Wady Hummana; below, at a terrible depth, 
I saw the promontory of Beyrout, flecked with its white 
houses, while beyond gleamed the broad blue Mediter¬ 
ranean ; in the background on the right and left were wild 
and barren mountains. We stopped awhile at this wondrous 
summit, 5,600 feet above the sea level, until we had fully 
taken in the magnificence of the scene. 

Descending, every turn of the road gave fresh glimpses 
of Beyrout and its charming environs. As we cleared the 
level a civilized region was entered, where orchards and 
gardens abounded; pleasant villas were seen on every hand, 
the pineta or pine grove was traversed, and soon we found 
ourselves among the shops and paved streets of Beyrout. 


Beyrout 

[As soon as we arrived in Beyrout (at the Hotel 
d’Orient) we gave thanks to the Lord that we were all 
well. “It is a grand thing,” said one of our party, “to 
have visited the sacred places, where, without doubt, we 
have trod the same ground where our Saviour walked. 
I consider that we have enjoyed a great privilege, and we 
cannot give our Lord praise enough.” The riding on 
horseback during the past four weeks—crossing through 
brooks, rivers, swampy places, and over various moun¬ 
tains—had at times been very difficult. Some of these 
mountains are rough, bare, and so very steep that we 
were often obliged to walk, since riding was impossible. 
We believe that many of these mountains are extinct 
volcanoes, ashes, cinders and large stones are scattered 
about them so promiscuously. Notwithstanding difficul¬ 
ties, however, I must say that during our trip through 
Palestine and Syria we enjoyed many a pleasant day 
riding over plains and valleys, and when we camped at 
night, the pure, sweet air was very refreshing. We had 
perfect weather all during our trip and, indeed, our dra¬ 
goman said that very little rain ever falls on Palestine, 
camps being generally pitched on dry ground. Every¬ 
one in our party was delighted with the splendid ar¬ 
rangements for camp life, and of this I will say more 
later; first I will write about Beyrout.] 

Beyrout is the principal commercial town of Syria, and 


236 



BEYROUT 















































“ 













1 




































BEYROUT. 


237 


is strangely different from any other. Bankers abound; 
there are Consulates of all the principal countries in the 
world. Almost everything that can be purchased in a 
European city may be purchased in Beyrout, and sou¬ 
venirs of Arab work may be bought to advantage; but 
the traveler will do better as a rule to make a bargain 
at the shops. 

There are several Physicians, English, American, etc., 
resident in the city. Good sea baths may be obtained 
near the Hotel d’Orient, and all the luxuries of the bar¬ 
ber’s establishment may be enjoyed at any of the barbers’ 
shops in Frank Street. 

Beyrout is beautifully situated on a promontory, which 
extends for about three miles into the Mediterranean. 

The shore line is indented with fine rocks and cliffs, 
and rising behind them undulations upon undulations, 
and in the background the gigantic range of Lebanon. 
The population has increased within the past few years, 
and is said to exceed at the present time 120,000. The 
climate is pleasant, and vegetation luxuriant; the palm 
tree flourishes, and flowers bloom everywhere in abun¬ 
dance. 

The history of Beyrout is a long and interesting one. 
It was a Phoenician city of great antiquity, and named 
by the Greeks and Romans Berytus. Augustus made it 
a colony with the title Colonia Felix Julia, and medals 
struck in honor of the Roman Emperors bore the legend, 
“Colonia Felix Beritas” (Plin. 5.20). It was decorated 
with a theater, baths, and amphitheater by Agrippa, grand¬ 
son of Herod the Great, who also instituted games and 
gladiatorial shows. It was celebrated under the later 
Empire for its law school, founded by Alexander Severus. 
The splendor of this school, which preserved in the East 
the language and jurisprudence of the Romans, may be 


238 


BEYROUT. 


computed to have lasted from the third to the middle of 
the sixth century (Gibbon 2.94). 

When the Saracens overran Syria, Beyrout fell into 
their hands, and during the wars of the Crusaders it often 
changed hands. It was captured by Baldwin I. in 1100, 
and was occupied for some time by Saladin. The Druse 
prince, Fakhr-ed-Din, made it his residence in 1595, and 
was instrumental in raising it from the low state into 
which it had fallen. 

In 1840 Beyrout was bombarded by the English, and 
recaptured for the Turks. After the massacres of 1860 
many Christians came and settled here, and from that 
date the prosperity of Beyrout has been greater than in 
any previous period of its history. There are scarcely 
any sights to see. The Bazaar does not present any of 
those Oriental features which are so attractive in other 
Eastern towns. The principal Mosque is closed. The 
only ancient structure is the Tower near the harbor. The 
houses are of semi-European build, and the costumes of 
semi-European cut. 

Beyrout is famous for its missionary and philanthropic 
institutions, and every traveler will do well to visit 
them, as they represent great power which will revolu¬ 
tionize Syria. 

The Syrian Protestant College has departments in 
Arabic Literature, Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Mod¬ 
ern Languages, Moral Science, Biblical Literature, Medi¬ 
cine, Surgery, Jurisprudence, etc.; it is under the general 
control of trustees in the United States, where the pres¬ 
ent funds are invested; but its local affairs are admin¬ 
istered by a Board of Managers, composed of American 
and British Missionaries and residents in Syria and 
Egypt. 

The college is conducted upon strictly Protestant and 
Evangelical principles, but is open to students from any 


BEYROUT. 239 

of the Oriental sects and nationalities who will conform 
to its regulations. 

The sects already represented are the Protestant, Or¬ 
thodox Greek, Papal Greek, Catholic, Maronite, Druse 
and Armenian. Direct proselytism is not attempted; 
but, without endeavoring to force Protestantism upon 
students of other sects, every effort is made by the per¬ 
sonal intercourse of professors and instructors, in the 
class-room and at other times, and by the general exer¬ 
cises and arrangements of the institutions, to bring each 
member into contact with the distinctive features of 
Evangelical truth. 

The Medical Department, under the management of 
several professors, is a special feature in the connection 
with the American Mission. Native practitioners have 
hitherto been grossly ignorant and incompetent. 

The School of Medicine furnishes a professional train¬ 
ing in accordance with the principles and practice of 
modern science, and is. well attended by students, who 
receive a four years’ training. 

There is also in connection with the Mission a Print¬ 
ing Press, which provides an ample and instructive liter¬ 
ature, and spreads the principles of the Mission by means 
of a weekly newspaper. 

Divine Service is conducted every Sunday in the hand¬ 
some church of the American Mission. 

The Brown Ophthalmic Hospital, founded by an Amer¬ 
ican gentleman of that name, was instituted in conse¬ 
quence of the inability to meet the needs of the people 
during the epidemics of opththalmia. It has been most 
successful in preventing the loss of sight to many in the 
land, where this particular form of disease is so prevalent. 

Church of England (services, 11 a. m., 4 p. m., Sum¬ 
mer; 6.30 p. m., Winter) is in connection with the Co¬ 
lonial and Continental Church Society. 


240 


BEYROUT. 


The British Syrian Schools, founded in 1860, include 
a Normal Training Institution, Day School (Elementary, 
Infant, Moslem), giving instruction to 680 pupils. 
Schools for the blind and for cripples, etc., etc. There 
are six branch schools in the Lebanon, with over 400 
pupils. 

The Jews’ School at Beyrout is under the auspices of 
the Church of Scotland. 

There are several French Institutions, including an 
orphanage, day schools, boarding schools, etc. 

The Italian Government supports the Scuola Reale 
Italiana Elementare. 

The Germans have an orphanage and school with 130 
pupils, and a Protestant Chapel for French and German 
services. 


Backsheesh 

Everywhere, from morning till night, we were tor¬ 
mented with applications for backsheesh, which has been 
called the alpha and omega of eastern travel. It is the 
first word an infant is taught to lisp; it was the first 
Arabic word I heard on arriving in Palestine, and the 
last as I left it. The word simply means “a gift,” but 
is applied generally to a gratuity or fee, and was expected 
no less by the naked children who swarmed around us 
when we arrived in a village, than by the enlightened 
officials of the Custom House or other public institutions. 
If each traveler would make a rule never to give back¬ 
sheesh, except for some positive service rendered, worth 
the sum given, he would confer a boon upon the people 


CAMP LIFE. 


241 


and upon future travelers. It should be remembered 
also that to most applicants a piastre or two represents 
an enormous sum of money. 

Now I will say something about our camp life. 


Camp Life 

When the camp arrangements are as they ought to be 
—and this is always guaranteed under the management 
of the dragomans engaged by Thomas Cook & Son— 
camp life is delightful. Friends make up little select 
parties of their own, and share the same tent or tents. 
Each tent is designed to accommodate two or three per¬ 
sons, and is well furnished, that is to say, it has an inner 
lining of chintz, which gives it a gay and bright appear¬ 
ance, and Turkey or Persian carpets are laid over the 
floor; it is fitted up with neat iron bedsteads, with the 
cleanest of clean linen, and good comfortable beds; 
round or against the tent-pole is a table, with washing- 
basin, and on the pole are strapped pegs for holding 
clothes, etc. 

In the center of the encampment the saloon is pitched— 
a spacious tent constituting the salle a manger and draw¬ 
ing-room of the “traveling hotel.” 

Each tent bears a number or some distinctive sign, 
and the traveler’s luggage is marked with a correspond¬ 
ing number or sign, so that every day, when we reached 
our camping-place, we found our tent pitched and all 
our belongings to hand. 

The daily arrangements are generally as follows: 
Early in the morning the dragoman’s whistle is sounded 
to summon the camp-followers, and then two or three 


242 


CAMP LIFE. 


men go round to all the tents, beating a tattoo on a tray, 
ringing a bell, etc., to make noise enough to thoroughly 
arouse the heaviest sleeper. In half an hour dressing 
and packing must be finished, and in that time breakfast 
is ready, and the attendants are at work taking down 
tents, folding up beds and bedding, and getting ready 
for the start. However early the start may be made 
there is always a good breakfast ready, and plenty of 
time allowed to do justice to it. After breakfast, every 
cup and plate is washed and packed in large cases. Every¬ 
thing needed for the journey has to be carried on mules 
—tents, poles, cords; stores for the four or five weeks’ 
provisions; plate, glass, knives and forks, tent furniture, 
the cooks’ stoves and fuel, the treasure chest—all has 
to be packed on the backs of mules, and carried over 
some of the most rugged and difficult roads in the world. 
The alacrity with which the work of packing and un¬ 
packing is done astonished every one in our party the 
first time we saw it, and was a continual source of amuse¬ 
ment day by day. 

After breakfast the start for the day’s journey is made; 
and, each day’s program having been announced the day 
before, travelers generally spend any leisure time in 
reading up the places they will visit. At some conven¬ 
ient and interesting spot, previously fixed upon, luncheon 
is served; this has been specially conveyed on mules. 

An hour and a half to two hours is generally allowed 
for luncheon time, which can also include a “nap” if 
needed. 

About six or seven in the evening the journeying for 
the day is over, and every day we had the unexpected 
but extreme satisfaction of finding tents all pitched, and 
the cooks busy at work beside the glowing camp-fire. 
Then we had time for a leisurely “wash-up” and to un¬ 
pack the portmanteau, until the dinner-bell rang. The 


CAMP LIFE. 


243 


table of the saloon was generally gay with flowers gath¬ 
ered en route, and the general aspect of the social board 
was such as might be expected in the neighborhood of 
the Italian Lakes, but not in the wilds of Syria. 

After dinner we amused ourselves according to the 
bent of our inclinations; the muleteers gathering round 
the camp-fire to smoke their narghilies; and about ten or 
eleven o’clock quiet would settle in the camp for the night. 

Everyone in our party was delighted with the Thos. 
Cook & Son splendid arrangements for our camp-life, 
and during our journey we were delighted with unex¬ 
pectedly good board, which gave us great satisfaction. 
























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